A new study by UK scientists found that insects have ‘no place to hide’ from climate change. Analysis of 50 years of UK data shows woodlands are not havens, while changing emergence times damage nature and farming. The research examined records of the first springtime flights of butterflies, moths and aphids, eggs of birds between 1965 and 2012. The results demonstrate a correlation between temperature change and animal life. As average temperatures have risen, aphids emerging a month earlier, birds laying eggs a week earlier. This shows that the balance of the food chain would be upset, a problem for every ecosystem.
The study’s chief James Bell, of Rothamsted Research Institute, said: «Under global warming you would expect woodlands to have some protection for insects, a buffer against change. But we didn’t see that. It is the major surprise and is disturbing. There is really no place to hide against the effects of global warming if you are an insect in the UK».
James Pearce-Higgins, of the British Trust for Ornithology: «Birds are at the top of many food chains and are sensitive to the impacts of climate change on the availability of their insect prey». Study found that the insectivorous birds between 1990 and 2015 is fell by 13% in Europe, but the omnivorous birds assessed did not show a decline.
The UK research, publisched in the journal Global Change Biology, found that aphids breed very rapidly and can adapt to changing temperatures quickly. Their first flight is now an average of 30 days earlier than 50 years ago. Birds, butterflies and moths are appearing one to two weeks earlier.
The aphids, living on the plants, also generate harmful effects on agriculture. Jon Pickup, of the Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture division of the Scottish government, said: «As pests, it remains a concern that aphid migrations are getting earlier at a dramatic rate and this piece of work shows us that signal across the UK very clearly».
Bell said timing mismatches were also affecting wildlife. «For example, the leafing date of the oak tree determines when the caterpillars will appear, and that determines when blue tits that feed on caterpillars lay their first egg. If they become desynchronised, it has cascading effects through the food chain, leading to fewer eggs, and this has been seen».
Researchers are increasingly concerned about dramatic drops in populations of insects, which underpin much of nature. Even a crisis for insects can generate a problem for the ecosystem and for humans
The study’s chief James Bell, of Rothamsted Research Institute, said: «Under global warming you would expect woodlands to have some protection for insects, a buffer against change. But we didn’t see that. It is the major surprise and is disturbing. There is really no place to hide against the effects of global warming if you are an insect in the UK».
James Pearce-Higgins, of the British Trust for Ornithology: «Birds are at the top of many food chains and are sensitive to the impacts of climate change on the availability of their insect prey». Study found that the insectivorous birds between 1990 and 2015 is fell by 13% in Europe, but the omnivorous birds assessed did not show a decline.
The UK research, publisched in the journal Global Change Biology, found that aphids breed very rapidly and can adapt to changing temperatures quickly. Their first flight is now an average of 30 days earlier than 50 years ago. Birds, butterflies and moths are appearing one to two weeks earlier.
The aphids, living on the plants, also generate harmful effects on agriculture. Jon Pickup, of the Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture division of the Scottish government, said: «As pests, it remains a concern that aphid migrations are getting earlier at a dramatic rate and this piece of work shows us that signal across the UK very clearly».
Bell said timing mismatches were also affecting wildlife. «For example, the leafing date of the oak tree determines when the caterpillars will appear, and that determines when blue tits that feed on caterpillars lay their first egg. If they become desynchronised, it has cascading effects through the food chain, leading to fewer eggs, and this has been seen».
Researchers are increasingly concerned about dramatic drops in populations of insects, which underpin much of nature. Even a crisis for insects can generate a problem for the ecosystem and for humans
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