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The macroecology of infectious diseases: a new perspective on global‐scale drivers of pathogen distributions and impacts
Author(s) -
Stephens Patrick R.,
Altizer Sonia,
Smith Katherine F.,
Alonso Aguirre A.,
Brown James H.,
Budischak Sarah A.,
Byers James E.,
Dallas Tad A.,
Jonathan Davies T.,
Drake John M.,
Ezenwa Vanessa O.,
Farrell Maxwell J.,
Gittleman John L.,
Han Barbara A.,
Huang Shan,
Hutchinson Rebecca A.,
Johnson Pieter,
Nunn Charles L.,
Onstad David,
Park Andrew,
VazquezProkopec Gonzalo M.,
Schmidt John P.,
Poulin Robert
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
ecology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.852
H-Index - 265
eISSN - 1461-0248
pISSN - 1461-023X
DOI - 10.1111/ele.12644
Subject(s) - macroecology , ecology , biology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , biodiversity , emerging infectious disease , citizen science , temporal scales , data science , relative abundance distribution , evolutionary biology , disease , abundance (ecology) , outbreak , computer science , relative species abundance , medicine , botany , pathology , virology
Identifying drivers of infectious disease patterns and impacts at the broadest scales of organisation is one of the most crucial challenges for modern science, yet answers to many fundamental questions remain elusive. These include what factors commonly facilitate transmission of pathogens to novel host species, what drives variation in immune investment among host species, and more generally what drives global patterns of parasite diversity and distribution? Here we consider how the perspectives and tools of macroecology, a field that investigates patterns and processes at broad spatial, temporal and taxonomic scales, are expanding scientific understanding of global infectious disease ecology. In particular, emerging approaches are providing new insights about scaling properties across all living taxa, and new strategies for mapping pathogen biodiversity and infection risk. Ultimately, macroecology is establishing a framework to more accurately predict global patterns of infectious disease distribution and emergence.