Could Spread of Zika Virus Be Linked to Climate Change?
The proliferation of the Zika virus could be linked to climate change, a top researcher told NBC News on Monday.
Zika, which is suspected of causing severe birth defects in Brazil and has now been found in Hawaii, is a tropical virus spread by mosquitoes whose numbers are exploding as the earth gets warmer.
"Their lifestyles, their behaviors, the speed with which they grow up is tightly related to climate," Heidi Brown at the University of Arizona said.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/weather/could-spread-zika-virus-be-linked-climate-change-n499156
Renato Araújo/Agência Brasília