Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
PARASITOLOGY, 2024 (SCI-Expanded)
Ixodes ricinus, commonly known as the castor bean tick and sheep tick, is a significant vectorof various diseases, such as tick-borne encephalitis and Lyme borreliosis. Owing to climatechange, the distribution and activity ofI. ricinusare expected to increase, leading to anincrease in the number of diseases transmitted by this species. Most distribution modelsand ecological niche models utilize macroclimate datasets such as WorldClim or CHELSAto map the distribution of disease-transmitting ticks. However, microclimatic factors are cru-cial for the activity and survival of small arthropods. In this study, an ecological niche mod-elling approach was used to assess the climatic suitability ofI. ricinususing both microclimaticand macroclimatic parameters. A Mixed model was built by combining parameters from theSoiltemp (microclimate) and Wordclim (macroclimate) databases, whereas a Macroclimatemodel was built with the CHELSA dataset. Additionally, future suitabilities were projectedviathe macroclimate model under the SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5 scenarios. Macroclimate andMixed models showed similar distributions, confirming the current distribution ofI. ricinus.The most important climatic factors were seasonality, annual temperature range, humidityand precipitation. Future projections suggest significant expansion in northern and easternEurope, with notable declines in southern Europe