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Mpox is an emerging, infectious disease that has caused outbreaks in at least 91 countries from May to August 2022. We assessed the link between international air travel patterns and Mpox transmission risk, and the relationship between the translocation of Mpox and human mobility dynamics after travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic had been lifted. Our three novel observations were that: i) more people traveled internationally after the removal of travel restrictions in the summer of 2022 compared to pre-pandemic levels; ii) countries with a high concentration of global air travel have the most recorded Mpox cases; and iii) Mpox transmission includes a number of previously nonendemic regions. These results suggest that international airports should be a primary location for monitoring the risk of emerging communicable diseases. Findings highlight the need for global collaboration concerning proactive measures emphasizing realtime surveillance. 

Bat‐borne pathogens are a threat to global health and in recent history have had major impacts on human morbidity and mortality. Examples include diseases such as rabies, Nipah virus encephalitis, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Climate change may exacerbate the emergence of bat‐borne pathogens by affecting the ecology of bats in tropical ecosystems. Here, we report the impacts of climate change on the distributional ecology of the common vampire batDesmodus rotundusacross the last century. Our retrospective analysis revealed a positive relationship between changes in climate and the northern expansion of the distribution ofD. rotundusin North America. Furthermore, we also found a reduction in the standard deviation of temperatures atD. rotunduscapture locations during the last century, expressed as more consistent, less‐seasonal climate in recent years. These results elucidate an association betweenD. rotundusrange expansion and a continental‐level rise in rabies virus spillover transmission fromD. rotundusto cattle in the last 50 years of the 120‐year study period. This correlative study, based on field observations, offers empirical evidence supporting previous statistical and mathematical simulation‐based studies reporting a likely increase of bat‐borne diseases in response to climate change. We conclude that theD. rotundusrabies system exemplifies the consequences of climate change augmentation at the wildlife–livestock–human interface, demonstrating how global change acts upon these complex and interconnected systems to drive increased disease emergence.