Spatial Ecology and Epidemiology Group, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom; Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
Thomas W Scott
Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States; Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of California, Davis, Davis, United States
Spatial Ecology and Epidemiology Group, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom; Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States; Sanaria Institute for Global Health and Tropical Medicine, Rockville, United States
GR William Wint
Environmental Research Group Oxford, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom; Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States; Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, United States
Dengue and chikungunya are increasing global public health concerns due to their rapid geographical spread and increasing disease burden. Knowledge of the contemporary distribution of their shared vectors, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus remains incomplete and is complicated by an ongoing range expansion fuelled by increased global trade and travel. Mapping the global distribution of these vectors and the geographical determinants of their ranges is essential for public health planning. Here we compile the largest contemporary database for both species and pair it with relevant environmental variables predicting their global distribution. We show Aedes distributions to be the widest ever recorded; now extensive in all continents, including North America and Europe. These maps will help define the spatial limits of current autochthonous transmission of dengue and chikungunya viruses. It is only with this kind of rigorous entomological baseline that we can hope to project future health impacts of these viruses.
