Abiotic factors have a profound effect on distribution, colonization, survival, abundance, behaviour, fitness, and the life history of insects. Extremes of these factors limit the geographic range of insect populations, either by causing direct natural mortality or by limiting the range of host plants or animals. Any organism exposed to extremes of abiotic factors will realize a variety of detrimental effects. Insects are especially vulnerable to such effects especially caused by temperature.

Most studies have concluded that insect pests would become more abundant as temperatures increase, through a number of interrelated processes, including range extensions and phenological changes, as well as increased rates of population development, growth, migration, and overwintering. A gradual, continuing rise in atmospheric CO₂ will also affect pest species abundance. However, individual species responses to climate changes vary.

If exposed to stressful conditions, insects may respond in different ways: they can behaviourally avoid stress by escaping, for example, by migration or changed activity patterns or continuously adapt (genetically or phenotypically) to the stress condition through selection or by plastic responses, for example, by changes in morphology, life history, or physiology. The global climate changes during the last few years give us the opportunity to investigate the effect they have on insects. The current issue focuses mainly on effects of temperature on insect abundance and distribution. Among other climate variables, temperature is more confidently used in predictions of climate change scenarios, and there is a wealth of evidence from which predictions of impacts of climate change might be derived.

Changes in both mean temperature and the extent and frequency of extremes can hence have major impacts on insect populations. We invite authors to submit original research or review articles on the above subject. Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

• Climatic change and expansion of insect distribution
• Insect evolution and fitness
• New insect-borne diseases and their distribution
• Predator-prey interactions in a changing world

Before submission authors should carefully read over the journal's Author Guidelines, which are located at http://www.hindawi.com/journals/psyche/guidelines/. Prospective authors should submit an electronic copy of their complete manuscript through the journal Manuscript Tracking System at http://mts.hindawi.com/ according to the following timetable: