Enduring extreme climate: Effects of severe drought on Triatoma brasiliensis populations in wild and man-made habitats of the Caatinga.

Triatoma brasiliensis populations fared better in dwellings and rocks than in cacti during extreme drought. Estimates of microhabitat and drought effects on infestation, density, and crowding suggest that only a few cacti (versus many rocks and dwellings) represent good-quality habitat under such extremely harsh conditions. Our findings provide empirical support to the microhabitat-quality hierarchy hypothesis, and imply that T. brasiliensis can endure extreme climate by exploiting high-quality microhabitats, whether wild or man-made, in the semiarid Caatinga.