Climate change drives spread of disease-carrying insects

ISTANBUL

Scientific forecasts suggest Türkiye could become one of Europe’s key transition zones for mosquito- and tick-borne diseases, particularly across the Black Sea, Marmara and Mediterranean regions, as climate change increases the risks associated with disease-carrying insects.

Rising temperatures, longer summers and shifting rainfall patterns are altering the distribution and life cycles of insects across the country, experts warn. These changes are allowing mosquitoes and ticks to emerge earlier, remain active for longer periods and produce more each year.

Entomologist İzzet Akça said insects are among the groups most affected by climate change because their development is closely linked to temperature. While harsh winters traditionally eliminated up to 80 percent of insect populations, milder winters now allow more to survive.

Mosquitoes and ticks reproduce most rapidly in temperatures between 20 and 25 degrees Celsius, Akça noted.

In Türkiye’s Black Sea region, mosquitoes that once appeared in late June are now emerging nearly a month earlier. Ticks are following a similar trend. Akça said cases of Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) are being reported earlier in the year, with some cases now emerging as early as April.

Higher temperatures also increase egg production, enabling some tick species to produce up to three times more.

Medical microbiologist Müzeyyen Mamal Torun said the spread of the invasive Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus), now increasingly established in the Marmara and Black Sea regions, could heighten the risk of diseases such as dengue fever and chikungunya.

Torun also pointed to the potential expansion of Lyme disease, leishmaniasis and West Nile fever, while noting that warmer winters have helped the pine processionary moth spread into northern and higher-altitude areas. The insect’s toxic hairs can trigger skin irritation, respiratory problems and asthma attacks.

Experts stress that eliminating standing water, using window screens and mosquito nets, maintaining parks and gardens, and checking for ticks after visits to rural areas remain among the most effective preventive measures.