International scientists formulate a roadmap for insect conservation and recovery

Illuminating patterns of firefly abundance using citizen science data and machine learning models

As insect populations decline in many regions, conservation biologists are increasingly tasked with identifying factors that threaten insect species and developing effective strategies for their conservation. One insect group of global conservation concern are fireflies (Coleoptera: Lampyridae). Although quantitative data on firefly populations are lacking for most species, anecdotal reports suggest that some firefly populations have declined in recent decades. Researchers have hypothesized that North American firefly populations are most threatened by habitat loss, pesticide use, and light pollution, but the importance of these factors in shaping firefly populations has not been rigorously examined at broad spatial scales. Using data from >24,000 surveys (spanning 2008-16) from the citizen science program Firefly Watch, we trained machine learning models to evaluate the relative importance of a variety of factors on bioluminescent firefly populations: pesticides, artificial lights at night, land cover, soil/topography, short-term weather, and long-term climate. Our analyses revealed that firefly abundance was driven by complex interactions among soil conditions (e.g., percent sand composition), climate/weather (e.g., growing degree days), and land cover characteristics (e.g., percent agriculture and impervious cover). Given the significant impact that climactic and weather conditions have on firefly abundance, there is a strong likelihood that firefly populations will be influenced by climate change, with some regions becoming higher quality and supporting larger firefly populations, and others potentially losing populations altogether. Collectively, our results support hypotheses related to factors threatening firefly populations, especially habitat loss, and suggest that climate change may pose a greater threat than appreciated in previous assessments. Thus, future conservation of North American firefly populations will depend upon 1) consistent and continued monitoring of populations via programs like Firefly Watch, 2) efforts to mitigate the impacts of climate change, and 3) insect-friendly conservation practices.

Diversity of true bugs (Insecta: Hemiptera: Heteroptera) from the El Impenetrable National Park, Argentina

The study of the Heteroptera (Hemiptera) fauna of the El Impenetrable National Park, resulted in an inventory composed of: Alydidae (2 spp.), Aradidae (1 sp.), Belostomatidae (5 spp.), Berytidae (1 sp.), Blissidae (1 sp.), Coreidae (11 spp.), Corixidae (2 spp.), Geocoridae (1 sp.), Gerridae (1 sp.), Hebridae (1 sp.), Largidae (4 spp.), Lygaeidae (5 spp.), Miridae (17 spp.), Nabidae (1 sp.), Notonectidae (1 sp.), Oxycarenidae (1 sp.), Pachygronthidae (1 sp.), Pachynomidae (2 spp.), Pentatomidae (16 spp.), Pleidae (1 sp.), Pyrrhocoridae (1 sp.), Reduviidae (30 spp.), Rhopalidae (5 spp.), Rhyparochromidae (12 spp.), Saldidae (1 sp.), Scutelleridae (2 spp.), Tingidae (1 sp.), and Veliidae (1 sp.). These findings include six new records for the Argentinean fauna: Prytanes foedus (Stl), Saldula pallipes (Fabricius), Camirus brevilinea (Walker), Atopozelus opsimus Elkins, Doldina bicarinata Stl, Rocconota sextuberculata St and 39 new records for Chaco Province.

Designing and Evaluating a Portable UV-LED Vane Trap to Expedite Arthropod Biodiversity Discovery

A novel design of a portable funnel light trap (PFLT) was presented for collecting insects in ecological studies. The trap consists of a compact plastic box equipped with a light source and power source, along with two plastic polypropylene interception vanes. The PFLT costs 18.3 USD per unit and weighs approximately 300 g. A maximum of six PFLT units can be packed in one medium-sized backpack (32 cm × 45 cm × 15 cm, 20 L), making it easier to set up multiple units in remote areas wherein biodiversity research is needed. The low cost and weight of the trap also allows for large-scale deployment. The design is customizable and can be easily manufactured to fit various research needs. To validate the PFLT's efficacy in collecting insects across different habitat types, a series of field experiments were conducted in South Korea and Laos, where 37 trials were carried out. The PFLT successfully collected 7497 insects without experiencing battery issues or damage by rain or wind. Insect compositions and abundances differed across the three sampled habitat types: forests, grasslands, and watersides. This new FLT trap is an important tool for studying and protecting insect biodiversity, particularly in areas wherein conventional light traps cannot be deployed.

Forecasting insect dynamics in a changing world

Predicting how insects will respond to stressors through time is difficult because of the diversity of insects, environments, and approaches used to monitor and model. Forecasting models take correlative/statistical, mechanistic models, and integrated forms; in some cases, temporal processes can be inferred from spatial models. Because of heterogeneity associated with broad community measurements, models are often unable to identify mechanistic explanations. Many present efforts to forecast insect dynamics are restricted to single-species models, which can offer precise predictions but limited generalizability. Trait-based approaches may offer a good compromise that limits the masking of the ranges of responses while still offering insight. Regardless of the modeling approach, the data used to parameterize a forecasting model should be carefully evaluated for temporal autocorrelation, minimum data needs, and sampling biases in the data. Forecasting models can be tested using near-term predictions and revised to improve future forecasts.

Evolutionary psychology of entomophobia and its implications for insect conservation

Many people, especially those living in developed countries, exhibit irrational negative feelings (e.g. fear, disgust, and aversion) toward insects. This so-called 'entomophobia' has often been suggested as a key contributing factor to the ongoing global decline in insects. However, this topic has not been well-investigated. From this point of view, we discuss the formation processes of entomophobia and its consequences from an evolutionary psychological perspective. Adopting the concept of the behavioral immune system, we suggest that the negative responses toward insects exhibited by modern people are driven by a series of emotional, cognitive, and behavioral traits that evolved to avoid infectious diseases. We then provide several strategic recommendations for mitigating the prevalence of entomophobia and a roadmap for better understanding how individual-level entomophobia can influence insect conservation. Understanding the human psychological dimension behind the ongoing decline of insects will provide useful insight on how best to mitigate this decline.

Patterns of high-flying insect abundance are shaped by landscape type and abiotic conditions

Insects are of increasing conservation concern as a severe decline of both biomass and biodiversity have been reported. At the same time, data on where and when they occur in the airspace is still sparse, and we currently do not know whether their density is linked to the type of landscape above which they occur. Here, we combined data of high-flying insect abundance from six locations across Switzerland representing rural, urban and mountainous landscapes, which was recorded using vertical-looking radar devices. We analysed the abundance of high-flying insects in relation to meteorological factors, daytime, and type of landscape. Air pressure was positively related to insect abundance, wind speed showed an optimum, and temperature and wind direction did not show a clear relationship. Mountainous landscapes showed a higher insect abundance than the other two landscape types. Insect abundance increased in the morning, decreased in the afternoon, had a peak after sunset, and then declined again, though the extent of this general pattern slightly differed between landscape types. We conclude that the abundance of high-flying insects is not only related to abiotic parameters, but also to the type of landscapes and its characteristics, which, on a long-term, should be taken into account for when designing conservation measures for insects.

Drivers and pressures behind insect decline in Central and Western Europe based on long-term monitoring data

Insect declines have been discussed intensively among experts, policymakers, and the public. Albeit, decreasing trends have been reported for a long time for various regions in Europe and North America, but the controversial discussion over the role of specific drivers and pressures still remains. A reason for these uncertainties lies within the complex networks of inter-dependent biotic and abiotic factors as well as anthropogenic activities that influence habitats, communities, populations, and individual organisms. Many recent publications aim to identify both the extent of the observed declines and potential drivers. With this literature analysis, we provide an overview of the drivers and pressures and their inter-relationships, which were concluded in the scientific literature, using some of the best-studied insect groups as examples. We conducted a detailed literature evaluation of publications on Carabidae (Coleoptera) and Lepidoptera trends with data for at least 6 years in countries of Central and Western Europe, with a focus on agricultural landscapes. From the 82 publications identified as relevant, we extracted all reported trends and classified the respective factors described according to the DPSIR model. Further, we analysed the level of scientific verification (presumed vs correlated vs examined) within these papers for these cited stressors. The extracted trends for both species groups underline the reported overall declining trend. Whether negative or positive trends were reported in the papers, our semi-quantitative analysis shows that changes in insect populations are primarily anthropogenically driven by agriculture, climate change, nature conservation activities, urbanisation, and other anthropogenic activities. Most of the identified pressures were found to act on habitat level, only a fraction attributed to direct effects to the insects. While our analysis gives an overview of existing research concerning abundance and biodiversity trends of carabids and lepidopterans, it also shows gaps in scientific data in this area, in particular in monitoring the pressures along with the monitoring of abundance trends. The scientific basis for assessing biodiversity changes in the landscape is essential to help all stakeholders involved to shape, e.g. agriculture and other human activities, in a more sustainable way, balancing human needs such as food production with conservation of nature.

The future of tropical insect diversity: strategies to fill data and knowledge gaps

The decline of insect diversity is a much-discussed, yet understudied phenomenon, particularly in the tropics, where the majority of insect abundance, diversity and biomass is found. Integrated approaches involving traditional taxonomic methods, new molecular approaches, and novel monitoring and identification tools and applications are needed to address related and challenging questions regarding how many species of tropical insects exist, their distributions and natural history, the relative impacts of global change drivers on insect diversity across complex tropical landscapes, and the effects of insect declines on ecosystem functions and services. The main barriers to addressing these challenges are a lack of capacity and funding for research on insects in tropical countries and a lack of recognition of their importance for ecosystem functioning and human wellbeing. Insects must be brought into policy agendas, local capacity and funding through cross-boundary collaborations and equitable scientific practices increased, and their importance emphasized.

Insect and arthropod conservation policies: the need for a paradigm shift

To date, insect conservation policy mainly consists of species protection lists, with some requiring habitat or ecosystem preservation to protect insect ecology. While a landscape or habitat approach seems the most appropriate for insect conservation, cases are rare of protected areas designated specifically for insects or other arthropods. Moreover, neither of these conservation approaches (species or habitat protection) have halted the worldwide decline in insects: species protection lists and reserves at best serve as band-aids for a massive hemorrhage. The main drivers of insect decline (global changes) are only loosely addressed by national and international policies. So, if we know the causes, what stands in the way of prevention and treatment for the problem? To save insects, our civilization needs psychotherapy rather than first-aid gestures: a paradigm shift that would place value on insects, and give rise to ecocentric policies informed by a wide range of stakeholders.

Drivers of Insect Community Change along the Margins of Mountain Streams in Serra da Estrela Natural Park (Portugal)

Mountain ecosystems are important biodiversity hotspots and valuable natural laboratories to study community assembly processes. Here, we analyze the diversity patterns of butterflies and odonates in a mountainous area of high conservation value-Serra da Estrela Natural Park (Portugal)-and we assess the drivers of community change for each of the two insect groups. The butterflies and odonates were sampled along 150 m transects near the margins of three mountain streams, at three elevation levels (500, 1000, and 1500 m). We found no significant differences in odonate species richness between elevations, but marginal differences (p = 0.058) were found for butterflies due to the lower number of species at high altitudes. Both insect groups showed significant differences in beta diversity (βtotal) between elevations, with species richness differences being the most important component for odonates (βrich = 55.2%), while species replacement drove the changes between butterfly assemblages (βrepl = 60.3%). Climatic factors, particularly those depicting harsher conditions of temperature and precipitation, were the best predictors of total beta diversity (βtotal) and its components (βrich, βrepl) for the two study groups. The study of insect biodiversity patterns in mountain ecosystems and of the role played by different predictors contribute to further our understanding on the community assembly processes and may help to better predict environmental change impacts on mountain biodiversity.

Agricultural margins could enhance landscape connectivity for pollinating insects across the Central Valley of California, U.S.A

One of the defining features of the Anthropocene is eroding ecosystem services, decreases in biodiversity, and overall reductions in the abundance of once-common organisms, including many insects that play innumerable roles in natural communities and agricultural systems that support human society. It is now clear that the preservation of insects cannot rely solely on the legal protection of natural areas far removed from the densest areas of human habitation. Instead, a critical challenge moving forward is to intelligently manage areas that include intensively farmed landscapes, such as the Central Valley of California. Here we attempt to meet this challenge with a tool for modeling landscape connectivity for insects (with pollinators in particular in mind) that builds on available information including lethality of pesticides and expert opinion on insect movement. Despite the massive fragmentation of the Central Valley, we find that connectivity is possible, especially utilizing the restoration or improvement of agricultural margins, which (in their summed area) exceed natural areas. Our modeling approach is flexible and can be used to address a wide range of questions regarding both changes in land cover as well as changes in pesticide application rates. Finally, we highlight key steps that could be taken moving forward and the great many knowledge gaps that could be addressed in the field to improve future iterations of our modeling approach.

Using Botanical Gardens as Butterfly Gardens: Insights from a Pilot Project in the Gran Sasso and Monti Della Laga National Park (Italy)

Butterfly gardens are green spaces designed as places where butterflies can feed, mate, and rest. Here, we present some perspectives on the possible use of botanical gardens in natural areas as butterfly gardens to promote insect conservation through science dissemination and citizen science activities. We explored this possibility with a project developed in the Botanical Garden of the Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park (Italy). We found an extremely high butterfly richness as a result of favorable conditions which can be common in botanical gardens. To promote awareness of insect conservation in the general public and citizen science activities, we have installed within the garden several posters illustrating the butterfly fauna of the park, the species that visitors can easily observe, and the importance of butterfly conservation. Using this case study, we provided reflections and guidelines for the realization and management of butterfly gardens in already existing botanical gardens, especially in natural areas. The realization of butterfly gardens in protected areas to promote awareness of insect conservation, as well as to perform scientific research (namely insect monitoring), may help to ensure that insects will exert a pivotal role in expanding the global network of protected areas under the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.

Long-term insect censuses capture progressive loss of ecosystem functioning in East Asia

Insects provide critical ecosystem services such as biological pest control, in which natural enemies (NE) regulate the populations of crop-feeding herbivores (H). While H-NE dynamics are routinely studied at small spatiotemporal scales, multiyear assessments over entire agrolandscapes are rare. Here, we draw on 18-year radar and searchlight trapping datasets (2003-2020) from eastern Asia to (i) assess temporal population trends of 98 airborne insect species and (ii) characterize the associated H-NE interplay. Although NE consistently constrain interseasonal H population growth, their summer abundance declined by 19.3% over time and prominent agricultural pests abandoned their equilibrium state. Within food webs composed of 124 bitrophic couplets, NE abundance annually fell by 0.7% and network connectance dropped markedly. Our research unveils how a progressive decline in insect numbers debilitates H trophic regulation and ecosystem stability at a macroscale, carrying implications for food security and (agro)ecological resilience during times of global environmental change.

Experiments are needed to quantify the main causes of insect decline

Sparked by reports of insect declines of unexpected extent, there has been a surge in the compilation and analysis of insect time series data. While this effort has led to valuable databases, disagreement remains as to whether, where and why insects are declining. The 'why' question is particularly important because successful insect conservation will need to address the most important drivers of decline. Despite repeated calls for more long-term data, new time series will have to run for decades to quantitatively surpass those currently available. Here we argue that experimentation in addition to quantitative analysis of existing data is needed to identify the most important drivers of insect decline. While most potential drivers of insect population change are likely to have already been identified, their relative importance is largely unknown. Researchers should thus unite and use statistical insight to set up suitable experiments to be able to rank drivers by their importance. Such a coordinated effort is needed to produce the knowledge necessary for conservation action and will also result in increased monitoring and new time series.

A roadmap for ladybird conservation and recovery

Ladybirds (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) provide services that are critical to food production, and they fulfill an ecological role as a food source for predators. The richness, abundance, and distribution of ladybirds, however, are compromised by many anthropogenic threats. Meanwhile, a lack of knowledge of the conservation status of most species and the factors driving their population dynamics hinders the development and implementation of conservation strategies for ladybirds. We conducted a review of the literature on the ecology, diversity, and conservation of ladybirds to identify their key ecological threats. Ladybird populations are most affected by climate factors, landscape composition, and biological invasions. We suggest mitigating actions for ladybird conservation and recovery. Short-term actions include citizen science programs and education, protective measures for habitat recovery and threatened species, prevention of the introduction of non-native species, and the maintenance and restoration of natural areas and landscape heterogeneity. Mid-term actions involve the analysis of data from monitoring programs and insect collections to disentangle the effect of different threats to ladybird populations, understand habitat use by taxa on which there is limited knowledge, and quantify temporal trends of abundance, diversity, and biomass along a management-intensity gradient. Long-term actions include the development of a worldwide monitoring program based on standardized sampling to fill data gaps, increase explanatory power, streamline analyses, and facilitate global collaborations.

Orthopteran Diversity in Steep Slope Vineyards: The Role of Vineyard Type and Vegetation Management

The abandonment of traditional agricultural practices and subsequent succession are major threats to many open-adapted species and species-rich ecosystems. Viticulture on steep slopes has recently suffered from strong declines due to insufficient profitability, thus increasing the area of fallow land considerably. Changing cultivation systems from vertically oriented to modern vineyard terraces offers an opportunity to maintain management economically viable and thus reduces further abandonment. Hillside parallel terraces favor mechanization, and their embankments offer large undisturbed areas that could provide valuable habitats. We investigated the effects of vineyard abandonment, different vineyard management types (vertically oriented vs. terraced), and local parameters on Orthoptera diversity in 45 study sites along the Upper Middle Rhine Valley in Germany. Our results show that woody structures and vineyard abandonment reduced Orthoptera diversity at the local and landscape scale due to decreased habitat quality, especially for open-adapted species. In contrast, open inter-rows of actively managed vineyard types supported heat-adapted Caelifera species. On terrace embankments, extensive management and taller vegetation benefited Ensifera species, while short and mulched vegetation in vertically oriented vineyards favored the dominance of one single Caelifera species. Our results highlight the significance of maintaining viticultural management on steep slopes for the preservation of both open-adapted Orthoptera species and the cultural landscape.

Protected areas and the future of insect conservation

Anthropogenic pressures are driving insect declines across the world. Although protected areas (PAs) play a prominent role in safeguarding many vertebrate species from human-induced threats, insects are not widely considered when designing PA systems or building strategies for PA management. We review the effectiveness of PAs for insect conservation and find substantial taxonomic and geographic gaps in knowledge. Most research focuses on the representation of species, and few studies assess threats to insects or the role that effective PA management can play in insect conservation. We propose a four-step research agenda to help ensure that insects are central in efforts to expand the global PA network under the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.

An updated checklist of Azorean arthropods (Arthropoda)

Background

The Azores is a remote oceanic archipelago of nine islands which belongs to the Macaronesia biogeographical region hosting a unique biodiversity. The present Azorean landscape is strongly modified by the presence of man and only in small areas, where the soil or climate was too rough, have primitive conditions remained unchanged. Despite the fact that most of the Azorean native habitats are now lost, a large number of endemic species are still present and need urgent conservation. The present checklist of terrestrial and freshwater arthropods of the Azores Archipelago is based on all known published literature. The main goal of this work is to list, as rigorously as possible, all the known terrestrial and freshwater arthropods of the Azores. In this way, we are contributing to solve the 'Linnaean' shortfall, i.e. an incomplete taxonomic description of species-level diversity and the Wallacean Biodiversity Shortfall, the incomplete species distribution knowledge.

New information

The checklist includes new records of arthropods at island and archipelago levels that were published in the last twelve years. Compared to the last checklist of Azorean arthropods (Borges et al. 2010b), a total of 217 taxa (species and subspecies) are added.Currently, the total number of terrestrial and freshwater arthropod species and subspecies in the Azores is estimated to be 2420 taxa belonging to 14 classes, 53 orders, 440 families, 1556 genera, 2400 species and 149 individual subspecies.The most diverse orders of Azorean arthropods are: Coleoptera (585 taxa), Diptera (423 taxa), Hemiptera (338 taxa), Hymenoptera (163 taxa), Lepidoptera (159 taxa) and Araneae (133 taxa).A total of 276 endemic taxa are currently known (232 species and 44 subspecies), belonging to eight classes and 22 orders. São Miguel, Terceira and Pico are the islands with higher number of endemic species and subspecies. In the Azores, the number of native non-endemic taxa is 793 taxa, totalling 1069 indigenous taxa. Compared to the other nearest Macaronesian archipelagos (Madeira and Canaries), the Azorean arthropod fauna is characterised by a lower percentage of endemism (endemics/indigenous: 26% in Azores, 47% in Madeira Archipelago and 42% in Canary Islands) and a high proportion of exotic introduced taxa (39% in Azores, 19% in Madeira Archipelago and 8% in Canary Islands).Based on recent IUCN Red-listing of Azorean arthropods, a large fraction of the endemic taxa is under high threat.

Different roles of concurring climate and regional land-use changes in past 40 years' insect trends

Climate and land-use changes are main drivers of insect declines, but their combined effects have not yet been quantified over large spatiotemporal scales. We analysed changes in the distribution (mean occupancy of squares) of 390 insect species (butterflies, grasshoppers, dragonflies), using 1.45 million records from across bioclimatic gradients of Switzerland between 1980 and 2020. We found no overall decline, but strong increases and decreases in the distributions of different species. For species that showed strongest increases (25% quantile), the average proportion of occupied squares increased in 40 years by 0.128 (95% credible interval: 0.123-0.132), which equals an average increase in mean occupancy of 71.3% (95% CI: 67.4-75.1%) relative to their 40-year mean occupancy. For species that showed strongest declines (25% quantile), the average proportion decreased by 0.0660 (95% CI: 0.0613-0.0709), equalling an average decrease in mean occupancy of 58.3% (95% CI: 52.2-64.4%). Decreases were strongest for narrow-ranged, specialised, and cold-adapted species. Short-term distribution changes were associated to both climate changes and regional land-use changes. Moreover, interactive effects between climate and regional land-use changes confirm that the various drivers of global change can have even greater impacts on biodiversity in combination than alone. In contrast, 40-year distribution changes were not clearly related to regional land-use changes, potentially reflecting mixed changes in local land use after 1980. Climate warming however was strongly linked to 40-year changes, indicating its key role in driving insect trends of temperate regions in recent decades.

Population dynamics of herbivorous insects in polluted landscapes

Environmental pollution is one cause of insect decline in the Anthropocene, but the underlying mechanisms remain obscure due to a paucity of pollution-impact studies on insects that address density-dependent processes. Long data series (19-26 years) are available only for a few species monitored around two industrial polluters in north-western Russia. A particularly exciting current finding is that industrial pollution determines the relative strength of rapid (stabilising) and delayed (destabilising) density dependence operating on a herbivore population. Most studies address acute effects of traditional pollutants (e.g. sulphur dioxide and trace elements) and nitrogen deposition on agricultural pests, whereas the effects of realistic concentrations of ozone, particulate matter and emerging pollutants on insects feeding on noncultivated plants are unknown. The accumulated evidence remains insufficient to predict the effects of pollutants of global concern on the population dynamics of herbivorous insects.

Citizen-led expeditions can generate scientific knowledge and prospects for researchers

Citizen-led explorative expeditions can foster closer connections between the public and the scientific community. Such expeditions have a considerable but mostly unrecognized track record of success and can help create important networks for advancing science.

Environmental effects of harvesting some Mexican wild edible insects: An overview

Most traditional edible insects are collected from the forest and agricultural fields, where they are considered pests. However, their importance goes beyond this. They also have an ecological role and potential to be an emerging alternative source of high-quality nutrients that can help satisfy the growing food demand for the human population. Agricultural insect pests are a healthy food source during the harvesting season in many tropical countries. In Mexico, wild insects such as chicatana (queen of flying leaf-cutter ant, Atta mexicana Smith, 1,858; Hymenoptera: Formicidae), chapulín (grasshopper, Pyrgomorphidae), chinicuil (agave red worm, Comadia redtenbacheri Hammerschmidt, 1,848: Lepidoptera, Cossidae), and meocuil (agave white worm, Aegiale hesperiaris Walker 1,856, Lepidoptera, Hesperiidae) are seasonally collected from the agricultural land and forest for food and medicine. Thus, their consumption might be regarded as support for biological plague control. However, in most countries (Mexico included), there is a lack of legislation about edible insects from harvesting to sacrifice and even their main safety aspects. So then, this research aims to provide an updated assessment of the potential use of agricultural pest insects as a sustainable alternative for food, considering current international legislative and ethical concerns about harvesting and consuming wild edible insects, focusing on some of the wild edible pest insects in Mexico.

An aggressive nonconsumptive effect mediates pest control and multipredator interactions in a coffee agroecosystem

Natural pest control is an alternative to pesticide use in agriculture, and may help to curb insect declines and promote crop production. Nonconsumptive interactions in natural pest control that historically have received far less attention than consumptive interactions, may have distinct impacts on pest damage suppression and may also mediate positive multipredator interactions. Additionally, when nonconsumptive effects are driven by natural enemy aggression, variation in alternative resources for enemies may impact the strength of pest control. Here we study control of the coffee berry borer (CBB), Hypothenemus hampei, by a keystone arboreal ant species, Azteca sericeasur, which exhibits a nonconsumptive effect on CBB by throwing them off coffee plants. We conducted two experiments to investigate: (1) if the strength of this behavior is driven by spatial or temporal variability in scale insect density (an alternative resource that Azteca tends for honeydew), (2) if this behavior mediates positive interactions between Azteca and other ground-foraging ants, and (3) the effect this behavior has on the overall suppression of CBB damage in multipredator scenarios. Our behavioral experiment showed that nearly all interactions between Azteca and CBB are nonconsumptive and that this behavior occurs more frequently in the dry season and with higher densities of scale insects on coffee branches. Our multipredator experiment revealed that borers thrown off coffee plants by Azteca can survive and potentially damage other nearby plants but may be suppressed by ground-foraging ants. Although we found no non-additive effects between Azteca and ground-foraging ants on overall CBB damage, together, both species resulted in the lowest level of plant damage with the subsequent reduction in "spillover" damage caused by thrown CBB, indicating spatial complementarity between predators. These results present a unique case of natural pest control, in which damage suppression is driven almost exclusively by nonconsumptive natural enemy aggression, as opposed to consumption or prey behavioral changes. Furthermore, our results demonstrate the variability that may occur in nonconsumptive pest control interactions when natural enemy aggressive behavior is impacted by alternative resources, and also show how these nonconsumptive effects can mediate positive interactions between natural enemies to enhance overall crop damage reduction.

Behavioral responses of bioluminescent fireflies to artificial light at night

Bioluminescent insects have been the subject of scientific interest and popular wonder for millennia. But in the 21st century, the fireflies, click beetles, and cave glow-worms that brighten our nights are threatened by an unprecedented competitor: anthropogenic light pollution. Artificial lights can obscure the light-based signals on which these and other bioluminescent organisms rely to court mates, deter predators, and attract prey. In the following review we summarize a recent influx of research into the behavioral consequences of artificial light at night for firefly beetles (Coleoptera: Lampyridae), which we organize into four distinct courtship signaling systems. We conclude by highlighting several opportunities for further research to advance this emerging field and by offering a set of up-to-date lighting recommendations that can help land managers and other stakeholders balance public safety and ecological sustainability.

Recovery of moth and butterfly (Lepidoptera) communities in a polluted region following emission decline

Environmental pollution is one of the major drivers of the present-day decline in global biodiversity. However, the links between the effects of industrial pollution on insect communities and the underlying species-specific responses remain poorly understood. We explored the spatial pattern in insect communities by analysing 581 samples of moths and butterflies (containing 25,628 individuals of 345 species) collected along a strong pollution gradient in subarctic Russia, and we recorded temporal changes in these communities during the pollution decline that occurred from 1992 to 2006. In the 1990s, the diversity of the Lepidoptera community was positively correlated with the distance from the copper-nickel smelter at Monchegorsk. The overall abundance of Lepidoptera did not change along the pollution gradient, although the abundance of many species decreased with increasing pollution. The responses of each individual species to pollution were associated with its life history traits. The abundances of monophagous species that fed inside live plant tissues and hibernated as imagoes or pupae were not affected by pollution, whereas the abundances of oligophagous and polyphagous species that fed externally on plants and hibernated as larvae generally declined near the smelter. Substantial decreases in aerial emissions from the smelter between 1992 and 2006 resulted in an increase in the diversity of moths and butterflies in severely polluted habitats, whereas their overall abundance did not change. This recovery of the Lepidoptera community occurred due to the reappearance of rare species that had been previously extirpated by pollution and was observed despite the lack of any signs of recovery of the vegetation in the heavily polluted sites. We conclude that the recovery trajectories of insect communities following emission control can be predicted from studies of their changes along spatial pollution gradients by using space-for-time substitution.

Drastic decline of extensive grassland species in Central Europe since 1950: Forester moths of the genus Jordanita (Lepidoptera, Zygaenidae) as a type example

The decline of biodiversity in general and of insect diversity in particular has been recognized as a major environmental problem in recent years. In this study, we analyze the distribution and the decline of populations of forester moths of the genus Jordanita in Central Europe since 1950 as a type example of the loss of grassland biodiversity, and discuss potential drivers causing this decline. Based on the extensive work in museums and private collections, a literature review and own observations, and including data as far back as 1834, this genus helps to understand the deeper reasons of insect population and biodiversity decline, as the well investigated six Central European species cover a broad range of extensive grassland habitats (fens to low-production grassland and xerothermic steppes) from low altitudes to high alpine meadows. Therefore, they monitor processes relevant also to other, less investigated grassland species. Although there are differences in research intensity over time and in different natural areas, we show that in the whole of Central Europe, the populations of all six investigated Jordanita species broke down massively in the past decades, both in terms of number of populated habitats (about 400 recorded localities after the year 2000 compared with a total number of about 1600 at all times, cumulated for all six species) and in terms of number of individuals. On the other hand, some natural areas on a regional scale have more or less maintained their Jordanita populations, due to conservative land use and due to the early implementation of conservation and protection management plans. The reasons of decline are manifold and monitored in detail by the different species with their different habitat requirements. They comprise (1) loss of habitats due to land use changes (both intensification and abandonment), (2) loss of habitats due to urbanization and construction work, (3) loss of habitat networks to cope with small-scale extinction events, (4) more intensive growth of grass at the expense of other plants in otherwise undisturbed habitats due to fertilization through the air (increased nitrogen levels due to human activities) and (5) use of pesticides.

Pollinator diversity benefits natural and agricultural ecosystems, environmental health, and human welfare

Biodiversity loss during the Anthropocene is a serious ecological challenge. Pollinators are important vectors that provide multiple essential ecosystem services but are declining rapidly in this changing world. However, several studies have argued that a high abundance of managed bee pollinators, such as honeybees (Apis mellifera), may be sufficient to provide pollination services for crop productivity, and sociological studies indicate that the majority of farmers worldwide do not recognize the contribution of wild pollinator diversity to agricultural yield. Here, we review the importance of pollinator diversity in natural and agricultural ecosystems that may be thwarted by the increase in abundance of managed pollinators such as honeybees. We also emphasize the additional roles diverse pollinator communities play in environmental safety, culture, and aesthetics. Research indicates that in natural ecosystems, pollinator diversity enhances pollination during environmental and climatic perturbations, thus alleviating pollen limitation. In agricultural ecosystems, pollinator diversity increases the quality and quantity of crop yield. Furthermore, studies indicate that many pollinator groups are useful in monitoring environmental pollution, aid in pest and disease control, and provide cultural and aesthetic value. During the uncertainties that may accompany rapid environmental changes in the Anthropocene, the conservation of pollinator diversity must expand beyond bee conservation. Similarly, the value of pollinator diversity maintenance extends beyond the provision of pollination services. Accordingly, conservation of pollinator diversity requires an interdisciplinary approach with contributions from environmentalists, taxonomists, and social scientists, including artists, who can shape opinions and behavior.

Toward global integration of biodiversity big data: a harmonized metabarcode data generation module for terrestrial arthropods

Metazoan metabarcoding is emerging as an essential strategy for inventorying biodiversity, with diverse projects currently generating massive quantities of community-level data. The potential for integrating across such data sets offers new opportunities to better understand biodiversity and how it might respond to global change. However, large-scale syntheses may be compromised if metabarcoding workflows differ from each other. There are ongoing efforts to improve standardization for the reporting of inventory data. However, harmonization at the stage of generating metabarcode data has yet to be addressed. A modular framework for harmonized data generation offers a pathway to navigate the complex structure of terrestrial metazoan biodiversity. Here, through our collective expertise as practitioners, method developers, and researchers leading metabarcoding initiatives to inventory terrestrial biodiversity, we seek to initiate a harmonized framework for metabarcode data generation, with a terrestrial arthropod module. We develop an initial set of submodules covering the 5 main steps of metabarcode data generation: (i) sample acquisition; (ii) sample processing; (iii) DNA extraction; (iv) polymerase chain reaction amplification, library preparation, and sequencing; and (v) DNA sequence and metadata deposition, providing a backbone for a terrestrial arthropod module. To achieve this, we (i) identified key points for harmonization, (ii) reviewed the current state of the art, and (iii) distilled existing knowledge within submodules, thus promoting best practice by providing guidelines and recommendations to reduce the universe of methodological options. We advocate the adoption and further development of the terrestrial arthropod module. We further encourage the development of modules for other biodiversity fractions as an essential step toward large-scale biodiversity synthesis through harmonization.

High Pollination Deficit and Strong Dependence on Honeybees in Pollination of Korla Fragrant Pear, Pyrus sinkiangensis

Pollination deficits can compromise fruit yield and quality and have been reported in several fruit crops. It is unknown whether there is a pollination deficit in the production of Korla fragrant pear, Pyrus sinkiangensis, in China, and if so, whether this deficit can be mitigated by the use of managed honeybees (Apis mellifera). We assessed insect communities, flower visitation, pollination deficit and honeybee contribution to pear pollination in Korla fragrant pear orchards in Xinjiang, China. Insect communities were monitored using colored pan traps, and pollination deficit was assessed by comparing fruit set with open pollination to that with hand pollination in orchards without beehives from 2018 to 2021. The contribution of honeybees to pollination was assessed by comparing flower visitation, fruit set and fruit quality in pear orchards with and without beehives in 2020 and 2021. In orchards without beehives, wild bees (72%) were the dominant pollinator group in pan traps, followed by honeybees (15%), moths, hoverflies, butterflies and wasps (Vespidae). Fruit set in these orchards was much lower with open pollination (8 ± 2%) than with hand pollination (74 ± 4%). When comparing pollination in orchards with and without beehives in 2020 and 2021, we found that honeybees were responsible for most of the flower visits in orchards with (96%) and without beehives (66%). Wild bees were responsible for 1% and 6% of flower visits in orchards with and without beehives, respectively. Fruit set was significantly higher in orchards with beehives (38 ± 9%) than in orchards without beehives (12 ± 3%), while fruit set and sugar content were positively associated with pollinator visitation rate. The findings reveal a large pollination deficit in Korla fragrant pear orchards, and show that this deficit can be mitigated using managed honeybees.

From science to society: implementing effective strategies to improve wild pollinator health

Despite a substantial increase in scientific, public and political interest in pollinator health and many practical conservation efforts, incorporating initiatives across a range of scales and sectors, pollinator health continues to decline. We review existing pollinator conservation initiatives and define their common structural elements. We argue that implementing effective action for pollinators requires further scientific understanding in six key areas: (i) status and trends of pollinator populations; (ii) direct and indirect drivers of decline, including their interactions; (iii) risks and co-benefits of pollinator conservation actions for ecosystems; (iv) benefits of pollinator conservation for society; (v) the effectiveness of context-specific, tailored, actionable solutions; and (vi) integrated frameworks that explicitly link benefits and values with actions to reverse declines. We propose use of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) conceptual framework to link issues and identify critical gaps in both understanding and action for pollinators. This approach reveals the centrality of addressing the recognized indirect drivers of decline, such as patterns of global trade and demography, which are frequently overlooked in current pollinator conservation efforts. Finally, we discuss how existing and new approaches in research can support efforts to move beyond these shortcomings in pollinator conservation initiatives. This article is part of the theme issue 'Natural processes influencing pollinator health: from chemistry to landscapes'.

SLAM Project - Long Term Ecological Study of the Impacts of Climate Change in the Natural Forest of Azores: III - Testing the impact of edge effects in a native forest of Terceira Island

Background

The data we present are part of the long-term project "SLAM Project - Long Term Ecological Study of the Impacts of Climate Change in the Natural Forest of Azores" that started in 2012, aiming to understand the impact of biodiversity erosion drivers on Azorean native forests (Azores, Macaronesia, Portugal). The data for the current study consist in an inventory of arthropods collected in three locations of a native forest fragment at Terra-Brava protected area (Terceira, Azores, Portugal) aiming to test the impact of edge effects on Azorean arthropod communities. The three locations were: (i) the edge of the forest, closer to the pastures; (ii) an intermediate area (100 m from edge); and (iii) the deepest part of the native forest fragment (more than 300 m from edge). The study was carried out between June 2014 and December 2015. A total of nine passive flight interception SLAM (Sea, Land and Air Malaise) traps were deployed (three in each of the studied locations), during 18 consecutive months. This study provides the raw data to investigate temporal and edge effect variation for the Azorean arthropod communities.

New information

The collected arthropods belong to a wide diversity of taxonomic groups of Arachnida, Diplopoda, Chilopoda and Insecta classes. We collected a total of 13,516 specimens from which it was possible to identify to species level almost all specimens (13,504). These identified specimens belong to 15 orders, 58 families (plus three with only genus or family level identification) and 97 species of arthropods. A total of 35 species are considered introduced, 34 native non-endemic and 28 endemic. Additionally, a total of 10 taxa (12 specimens) were recorded at genus, family or order level. This dataset will allow researchers to test the impact of edge effect on arthropod biodiversity and to investigate seasonal changes in Azorean arthropod native forest communities.

Temperature preferences drive additive biotic homogenization of Orthoptera assemblages

The degradation of natural habitats is causing ongoing homogenization of biological communities and declines in terrestrial insect biodiversity, particularly in agricultural landscapes. Orthoptera are focal species of nature conservation and experienced significant diversity losses over the past decades. However, the causes underlying these changes are not yet fully understood. We analysed changes in Orthoptera assemblages surveyed in 1988, 2004 and 2019 on 198 plots distributed across four major grassland types in Central Europe. We demonstrated compositional differences in Orthoptera assemblages found in wet, dry and mesic grasslands, as well as ruderal habitats decreased, indicating biotic homogenization. However, mean α-diversity of Orthoptera assemblages increased over the study period. We detected increasing numbers of species with preferences for higher temperatures in mesic and wet grasslands. By analysing the temperature, moisture and vegetation preferences of Orthoptera, we found that additive homogenization was driven by a loss of species adapted to extremely dry and nitrogen-poor habitats and a parallel spread of species preferring warmer macroclimates.

Searching the web builds fuller picture of arachnid trade

Wildlife trade is a major driver of biodiversity loss, yet whilst the impacts of trade in some species are relatively well-known, some taxa, such as many invertebrates are often overlooked. Here we explore global patterns of trade in the arachnids, and detected 1,264 species from 66 families and 371 genera in trade. Trade in these groups exceeds millions of individuals, with 67% coming directly from the wild, and up to 99% of individuals in some genera. For popular taxa, such as tarantulas up to 50% are in trade, including 25% of species described since 2000. CITES only covers 30 (2%) of the species potentially traded. We mapped the percentage and number of species native to each country in trade. To enable sustainable trade, better data on species distributions and better conservation status assessments are needed. The disparity between trade data sources highlights the need to expand monitoring if impacts on wild populations are to be accurately gauged and the impacts of trade minimised.

Urban forest invertebrates: how they shape and respond to the urban environment

Invertebrates comprise the most diversified animal group on Earth. Due to their long evolutionary history and small size, invertebrates occupy a remarkable range of ecological niches, and play an important role as “ecosystem engineers” by structuring networks of mutualistic and antagonistic ecological interactions in almost all terrestrial ecosystems. Urban forests provide critical ecosystem services to humans, and, as in other systems, invertebrates are central to structuring and maintaining the functioning of urban forests. Identifying the role of invertebrates in urban forests can help elucidate their importance to practitioners and the public, not only to preserve biodiversity in urban environments, but also to make the public aware of their functional importance in maintaining healthy greenspaces. In this review, we examine the multiple functional roles that invertebrates play in urban forests that contribute to ecosystem service provisioning, including pollination, predation, herbivory, seed and microorganism dispersal and organic matter decomposition, but also those that lead to disservices, primarily from a public health perspective, e.g., transmission of invertebrate-borne diseases. We then identify a number of ecological filters that structure urban forest invertebrate communities, such as changes in habitat structure, increased landscape imperviousness, microclimatic changes and pollution. We also discuss the complexity of ways that forest invertebrates respond to urbanisation, including acclimation, local extinction and evolution. Finally, we present management recommendations to support and conserve viable and diverse urban forest invertebrate populations into the future.

Unravelling insect declines: can space replace time?

Temporal trends in insect numbers vary across studies and habitats, but drivers are poorly understood. Suitable long-term data are scant and biased, and interpretations of trends remain controversial. By contrast, there is substantial quantitative evidence for drivers of spatial variation. From observational and experimental studies, we have gained a profound understanding of where insect abundance and diversity is higher-and identified underlying environmental conditions, resource change and disturbances. We thus propose an increased consideration of spatial evidence in studying the causes of insect decline. This is because for most time series available today, the number of sites and thus statistical power strongly exceed the number of years studied. Comparisons across sites allow quantifying insect population risks, impacts of land use, habitat destruction, restoration or management, and stressors such as chemical and light pollution, pesticides, mowing or harvesting, climatic extremes or biological invasions. Notably, drivers may not have to change in intensity to have long-term effects on populations, e.g. annually repeated disturbances or mortality risks such as those arising from agricultural practices. Space-for-time substitution has been controversially debated. However, evidence from well-replicated spatial data can inform on urgent actions required to halt or reverse declines-to be implemented in space.

SLAM Project - Long Term Ecological Study of the Impacts of Climate Change in the Natural Forest of Azores: II - A survey of exotic arthropods in disturbed forest habitats

The data we present consist of an inventory of exotic arthropods, potentially invasive, collected in exotic and mixed forests and disturbed native forest patches of the Azores Archipelago. The study was carried out between 2019 and 2020 in four islands: Corvo, Flores, Terceira and Santa Maria, where a total of 45 passive flight interception SLAM traps were deployed, during three to six consecutive months. This manuscript is the second contribution of the “SLAM Project - Long Term Ecological Study of the Impacts of Climate Change in the Natural Forest of Azores”.

We provide an inventory of terrestrial arthropods belonging to Arachnida, Diplopoda, Chilopoda and Insecta classes from four Azorean islands. We identified a total of 21,175 specimens, belonging to 20 orders, 93 families and 249 species of arthropods. A total of 125 species are considered introduced, 89 native non-endemic and 35 endemic. We registered 34 new records (nine for Corvo, three for Flores, six for Terceira and 16 for Santa Maria), of which five are new for Azores, being all exotic possibly recently introduced: Dieckmanniellus nitidulus (Gyllenhal, 1838), Gronops fasciatus Küster, 1851, Hadroplontus trimaculatus (Fabricius, 1775), Hypurus bertrandi (Perris, 1852) (all Coleoptera, Curculionidae) and Cardiocondyla mauritanica Forel, 1890 (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). This publication highlights the importance of planted forests and disturbed native forest patches as reservoirs of potentially invasive arthropods and refuges for some rare relict endemic arthropod species.

Characterizing the Chemical Profile of Biological Decline in Stormwater-Impacted Urban Watersheds

Chemical contamination is an increasingly important conservation issue in urban runoff-impacted watersheds. Regulatory and restoration efforts typically evaluate limited conventional parameters and pollutants. However, complex urban chemical mixtures contain hundreds to thousands of organic contaminants that remain unidentified, unregulated, and poorly understood. This study aimed to develop broadly representative metrics of water quality impairment corresponding to previously documented biological degradation along gradients of human impacts. Stream samples (n = 65, baseflow/rainfall conditions, 2017-2018) were collected from 15 regional watersheds (Puget Sound, WA, USA) across an urbanization gradient defined by landscape characteristics. Surface water chemical composition characterized via non-targeted high-resolution mass spectrometry (7068 detections) was highly correlated with landscape-based urbanization gradient (p < 0.01) and season (p < 0.01). Landscape-scale changes in chemical composition closely aligned with two anchors of biological decline: coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) mortality risk (p < 0.001) and loss of stream macroinvertebrate diversity and abundance (p < 0.001). We isolated and identified 32 indicators for urban runoff impacts and corresponding receiving water ecological health, including well-known anthropogenic contaminants (e.g., caffeine, organophosphates, vehicle-derived chemicals), two related environmental transformation products, and a novel (methoxymethyl)melamine compound. Outcomes support data-directed selection of next-generation water quality indicators for prioritization and evaluation of watershed management efforts intended to protect aquatic ecosystems.

An updated checklist to the biodiversity data of ladybeetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Azores Archipelago (Portugal)

BACKGROUND

A recently-published review from 2021 presents a comprehensive checklist of ladybeetles of Portugal, including the Azores and Madeira Archipelagos. Until then, the available information was very scattered and based on a single revision dating back to 1986, a few international catalogues and databases, individual records and studies on communities of agroecosystems. However, no information was available on faunal composition across the Azorean islands and their habitats, using standardised inventories. Here, we present data about the biodiversity of ladybeetles and their distribution and abundance in five Islands of the Azores (Faial, Graciosa, Pico, São Jorge and São Miguel). Surveys included herbaceous and arboreal habitats from native to anthropogenic-managed habitats: ruderal road vegetation, vegetable garden, mixed forest of endemic and non-native host plants, coastal prairies, coastal mixed vegetation, cornfields and urban areas. We aimed to contribute to the ongoing effort to document the terrestrial biodiversity of Portugal, including the Archipelago of the Azores, within the research project AZORESBIOPORTAL-PORBIOTA (ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000072).

NEW INFORMATION

In this study, a total of 1,487 specimens of Coccinellidae belonging to 19 species are reported for several habitats. The listed species are from one single sub-familiy (Coccinellinae) and six tribes; Chilocorini (one species), Coccidulini (three species), Coccinellini (six species), Noviini (one species), Scymnini (seven species), Stethorini (one species). The number of species collected per island differed; Faial (10 species), Graciosa (four species), Pico (seven species), São Jorge (seven species) and São Miguel (12 species). For six species, new island records are given. Currently, the number of species known to occur in the Azores are 32, including two doubtful records. The majority of species are Scymnini, being Scymnus (Scymnus) interruptus (Goeze, 1777) and Scymnus (Scymnus) nubilus Mulsant, 1850, the most abundant species (relative abundance 71.1%). This database will be the baseline of a long-term monitoring project allowing assessment of the impact of ongoing global changes in the distribution and abundance of ladybeetles.

Monitoring Arthropods in Azorean Agroecosystems: the project AGRO-ECOSERVICES

BACKGROUND

The data we present are part of the AGRO-ECOSERVICES project (Assessing ecosystem services and disservices provided by arthropod species in Azorean agroecosystems). The project aims to evaluate the relative importance of native and non-native organisms as ecosystem services (ES) and disservices (ED) providers, by combining novel, direct and quantitative tools for monitoring agro-biodiversity. Ecosystem services include evaluation of natural pest control by predation, seed predation on weed plants, pollination, decomposition and ecosystem disservices, herbivory and seed predation on crop plants. Active Aerial Searching (AAS) (only in maize-fields) and pitfall traps were used to sample the arthropod biodiversity (predatory spiders, true-bugs and beetles and main insect pests) on four agricultural habitats of Terceira Island, namely citrus orchards, low and high elevation maize fields and vineyards.

NEW INFORMATION

We provided an inventory of all arthropods recorded in four Azorean agroecosystems (citrus orchards, low and high elevation maize fields and vineyards) from Terceira Island. A total of 50412 specimens were collected, belonging to four classes, 20 orders, 81 families and 200 identified species of arthropods. A total of 127 species are considered introduced (n = 22646) and 69 native non-endemic (n = 24117). Four endemic species were recorded with very few specimens (n = 14) and 3635 specimens belong to unidentified taxa recorded only at genus or family level. Five species are new records for Terceira Island, with Lagriahirta (Linnaeus, 1758) (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae) being also a new record for the Azores. This publication contributes to a better knowledge of the arthropods communities present in agro-ecosystems of Terceira Island and will serve as a baseline for future monitoring schemes targeting the long-term change in arthropod diversity and abundance.

Cytochrome c oxidase subunit I barcode species delineation methods imply critically underestimated diversity in ‘common’ Hermeuptychia butterflies (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Satyrinae)

DNA ‘barcoding’ has contributed greatly to resolving species limits in rapidly diverging tropical insect groups. Here, we explored species diversity in the widespread, cryptic Neotropical butterfly genus Hermeuptychia by generating 601 new sequences of the cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) barcode, tripling available information. Our dataset focused in particular on Ecuador, a biogeographically pivotal country, with additional sequences from Brazil, Costa Rica, French Guiana, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Peru. We examined the performance of two phylogeny-based approaches for objectively delineating species, Generalized Mixed Yule Coalescent (GMYC) and Poisson Tree Processes (PTP), as well as a clustering-based approach, Automatic Barcode Gap Discovery (ABGD), on the combined dataset, including our data and 302 published sequences. In general, GMYC and PTP tended to cluster or split likely species as assessed from morphology, depending on model settings, whereas ABGD was less sensitive and produced a more plausible classification. Numerous sequences formed well-supported clades, putative species, that were unrepresented in previously published datasets. The average diversity across all methods was 45 species, in contrast to the 11 species recognized in the current taxonomy. The resulting COI dataset, in combination with ongoing genomic and morphological research, should significantly clarify our understanding of Hermeuptychia species diversity.

Evaluating firefly extinction risk: Initial red list assessments for North America

Fireflies are a family of charismatic beetles known for their bioluminescent signals. Recent anecdotal reports suggest that firefly populations in North America may be in decline. However, prior to this work, no studies have undertaken a systematic compilation of geographic distribution, habitat specificity, and threats facing North American fireflies. To better understand their extinction risks, we conducted baseline assessments according to the categories and criteria of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List for 132 species from the United States and Canada (approximately 79% of described species in the region). We found at least 18 species (14%) are threatened with extinction (e.g. categorized as Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable) due to various pressures, including habitat loss, light pollution, and climate change (sea level rise and drought). In addition, more than half of the species (53%) could not be evaluated against the assessment criteria due to insufficient data, highlighting the need for further study. Future research and conservation efforts should prioritize monitoring and protecting populations of at-risk species, preserving and restoring habitat, gathering data on population trends, and filling critical information gaps for data deficient species suspected to be at risk.

Development of the European Ladybirds Smartphone Application: A Tool for Citizen Science

Wildlife observations submitted by volunteers through citizen science initiatives are increasingly used within research and policy. Ladybirds are popular and charismatic insects, with most species being relatively easy to identify from photographs. Therefore, they are considered an appropriate taxonomic group for engaging people through citizen science initiatives to contribute long-term and large-scale datasets for use in many different contexts. Building on the strengths of a mass participation citizen science survey on ladybirds in the United Kingdom, we have developed a mobile application for ladybird recording and identification across Europe. The main aims of the application are to: (1) compile distribution data for ladybird species throughout Europe, and use this to assess changes in distribution over time; (2) connect and engage people in nature and increase awareness about the diversity and ecological importance of ladybirds. In developing the application we first constructed a database including ladybird species from the United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Italy, Belgium, and Portugal with associated information on relevant morphological features (e.g., size, main color, pronotum pattern) to inform identification. Additionally, the species were assessed on the basis of probability of occurrence within each country which enables users to reduce the number of species to only those with relevance to the location of the recorder. This is amongst the first collaborative citizen science approaches aimed at involving participants across Europe in recording a group of insects. In the near future, we aim to expand the use of the application to all countries in Europe.

Experimental evidence for neonicotinoid driven decline in aquatic emerging insects

Survey data show a large-scale decline in insects. This global decline is often linked to human actions in intensive agricultural areas. To investigate whether this decline has a causal relationship with neonicotinoid insecticides, we performed an outdoor experiment with representative surface water concentrations of the neonicotinoid thiacloprid. We exposed naturally formed aquatic communities to increasing neonicotinoid concentrations and monitored insect emergence during a 3-mo period. We show that increasing neonicotinoid concentrations strongly decreased the abundance and biomass of five major insect orders that together comprised >99% of the 55,574 collected insects as well as the diversity of the most species-rich freshwater family, thus showing a causal relation between insect decline and neonicotinoids.

There is an ongoing unprecedented loss in insects, both in terms of richness and biomass. The usage of pesticides, especially neonicotinoid insecticides, has been widely suggested to be a contributor to this decline. However, the risks of neonicotinoids to natural insect populations have remained largely unknown due to a lack of field-realistic experiments. Here, we used an outdoor experiment to determine effects of field-realistic concentrations of the commonly applied neonicotinoid thiacloprid on the emergence of naturally assembled aquatic insect populations. Following application, all major orders of emerging aquatic insects (Coleoptera, Diptera, Ephemeroptera, Odonata, and Trichoptera) declined strongly in both abundance and biomass. At the highest concentration (10 µg/L), emergence of most orders was nearly absent. Diversity of the most species-rich family, Chironomidae, decreased by 50% at more commonly observed concentrations (1 µg/L) and was generally reduced to a single species at the highest concentration. Our experimental findings thereby showcase a causal link of neonicotinoids and the ongoing insect decline. Given the urgency of the insect decline, our results highlight the need to reconsider the mass usage of neonicotinoids to preserve freshwater insects as well as the life and services depending on them.

Terrestrial insects as a promising source of chitosan and recent developments in its application for various industries

Chitosan is a deacetylated form of chitin and increasingly important amino-polysaccharide used in many various sectors including agriculture, food, and biomedicine. However, chitosan from marine sources has several adverse effects, including allergenic components harmful to human health. Furthermore, marine resources are seasonal, and availability is limited due to dependency on environmental conditions and climate change. In addition, shell infection in crustaceans and environmental contamination make the harvesting of chitin and chitosan problematic. In recent years, chitosan from terrestrial insects has attracted considerable interest. The discoveries show insect chitosan is more advantageous compared to crustacean chitosan. In addition, we were unable to find any literature about the adverse effects of insect chitosan thus far. This review aims to reveal information regarding crustacean and terrestrial insect chitosan and recent advances in chitosan sources. Applications from specific insect orders and perspectives for further study will also be highlighted, including medical and sensing applications.

Conservation resource allocation, small population resiliency, and the fallacy of conservation triage

Some conservation prioritization methods are based on the assumption that conservation needs overwhelm current resources and not all species can be conserved; therefore, a conservation triage scheme (i.e., when the system is overwhelmed, species should be divided into three groups based on likelihood of survival, and efforts should be focused on those species in the group with the best survival prospects and reduced or denied to those in the group with no survival prospects and to those in the group not needing special efforts for their conservation) is necessary to guide resource allocation. We argue that this decision-making strategy is not appropriate because resources are not as limited as often assumed, and it is not evident that there are species that cannot be conserved. Small population size alone, for example, does not doom a species to extinction; plants, reptiles, birds, and mammals offer examples. Although resources dedicated to conserving all threatened species are insufficient at present, the world's economic resources are vast, and greater resources could be dedicated toward species conservation. The political framework for species conservation has improved, with initiatives such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals and other international agreements, funding mechanisms such as The Global Environment Facility, and the rise of many nongovernmental organizations with nimble, rapid-response small grants programs. For a prioritization system to allow no extinctions, zero extinctions must be an explicit goal of the system. Extinction is not inevitable, and should not be acceptable. A goal of no human-induced extinctions is imperative given the irreversibility of species loss.