Physiological characteristics and cold tolerance of overwintering eggs in Gomphocerus sibiricus L. (Orthoptera: Acrididae)

Predictions Based on Different Climate Change Scenarios: The Habitat of Typical Locust Species Is Shrinking in Kazakhstan and Xinjiang, China

Climate change, especially climate extremes, can increase the uncertainty of locust outbreaks. The Italian locust (Calliptamus italicus (Linnaeus, 1758)), Asian migratory locust (Locusta migratoria migratoria Linnaeus, 1758), and Siberian locust (Gomphocerus sibiricus (Linnaeus, 1767)) are common pests widely distributed in the semidesert grasslands of Central Asia and its surrounding regions. Predicting the geographic distribution changes and future habitats of locusts in the context of climate warming is essential to effectively prevent large and sudden locust outbreaks. In this study, the optimized maximum entropy (MaxEnt) model, employing a combination of climatic, soil, and topographic factors, was used to predict the potential fitness areas of typical locusts in the 2030s and 2050s, assuming four shared socioeconomic pathways (SSP126, SSP245, SSP370, and SSP585) in the CMIP6 model. Modeling results showed that the mean area under the curve (AUC) and true statistical skill (TSS) of the MaxEnt model reached 0.933 and 0.7651, respectively, indicating that the model exhibited good prediction performance. Our results showed that soil surface sand content, slope, mean precipitation during the hottest season, and precipitation seasonality were the key environmental variables affecting locust distribution in the region. The three locust species were mainly distributed in the upstream region of the Irtysh River, the Alatao Mountain region, the northern slopes of the Tianshan Mountains, around Sayram Lake, the eastern part of the Alakol Lake region, the Tekes River region, the western part of Ulungur Lake, the Ili River, and the upstream region of the Tarim River. According to several climate projections, the area of potential habitat for the three most common locust species will decrease by 3.9 × 10⁴-4.6 × 10⁴ km² by the 2030s and by 6.4 × 10⁴-10.6 × 10⁴ km² by the 2050s. As the climate becomes more extreme, the suitable area will shrink, but the highly suitable area will expand; thus, the risk of infestation should be taken seriously. Our study present a timely investigation to add to extensive literature currently appearing regarding the myriad ways climate change may affect species. While this naturally details a limited range of taxa, methods and potential impacts may be more broadly applicable to other locust species.

Metabolite Changes in Orange Dead Leaf Butterfly Kallima inachus during Ontogeny and Diapause

Holometabolism is a form of insect development which includes four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and imago (or adult). The developmental change of whole body in metabolite levels of holometabolous insects are usually ignored and lack study. Diapause is an alternative life-history strategy that can occur during the egg, larval, pupal, and adult stages in holometabolous insects. Kallima inachus (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) is a holometabolous and adult diapausing butterfly. This study was intended to analyze metabolic changes in K. inachus during ontogeny and diapause through a non-targeted UPLC-MS/MS (ultra-performance liquid chromatograph coupled with tandem mass spectrometry) based metabolomics analysis. A variety of glycerophospholipids (11), amino acid and its derivatives (16), and fatty acyls (nine) are crucial to the stage development of K. inachus. 2-Keto-6-acetamidocaproate, N-phenylacetylglycine, Cinnabarinic acid, 2-(Formylamino) benzoic acid, L-histidine, L-glutamate, and L-glutamine play a potentially important role in transition of successive stages (larva to pupa and pupa to adult). We observed adjustments associated with active metabolism, including an accumulation of glycerophospholipids and carbohydrates and a degradation of lipids, as well as amino acid and its derivatives shifts, suggesting significantly changed in energy utilization and management when entering into adult diapause. Alpha-linolenic acid metabolism and ferroptosis were first found to be associated with diapause in adults through pathway analyses. Our study lays the foundation for a systematic study of the developmental mechanism of holometabolous insects and metabolic basis of adult diapause in butterflies.