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. 2021 Jan 12;118(2):e2023989118.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.2023989118.

Insect decline in the Anthropocene: Death by a thousand cuts

David L Wagner  1 , Eliza M Grames  2 , Matthew L Forister  3 , May R Berenbaum  4 , David Stopak  5
Affiliations

Insect decline in the Anthropocene: Death by a thousand cuts

David L Wagner et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .
No abstract available

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Death by a thousand cuts: Global threats to insect diversity. Stressors from 10 o’clock to 3 o’clock anchor to climate change. Featured insects: Regal fritillary (Speyeria idalia) (Center), rusty patched bumble bee (Bombus affinis) (Center Right), and Puritan tiger beetle (Cicindela puritana) (Bottom). Each is an imperiled insect that represents a larger lineage that includes many International Union for Conservation of Nature “red list” species (i.e., globally extinct, endangered, and threatened species). Illustration: Virginia R. Wagner (artist).
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Fragile communities challenged by global change. (A) Cloud forest, Monteverde, Costa Rica: Threatened by rising global temperatures that lead to greater numbers of cloud-free days and extended droughts. Image credit: Janet Ellis (photographer). (B) Silversword (Argyroxiphium sandwicense subsp. macrocephalum) grove, Haleakala National Park, Hawaii: Threatened by diminished water availability and related climate changes. Image credit: Flickr/Forest and Kim Starr, licensed under CC BY 3.0. (C) Tallgrass prairie, Markham, Illinois: Threatened by agriculture and insularization. Image credit: Abbie Schrotenboer (Trinity Christian College, Palos Heights, IL). (D) Community composed of endemic Miconia robinsoniana (sienna-colored shrubs), ferns, and sedges, Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador: Threatened by many exotic plants; the yellow-green shrub is red quinine tree (Cinchona pubescens), an invasive on many Pacific islands. Image credit: Heinke Jäger (Charles Darwin Foundation, Galápagos, Ecuador).
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
iNaturalist popularity: Growth of insect (purple) and vertebrate (teal) records from iNaturalist from its inception in 2010 to present. Each record includes a photograph, occurrence data, and a wild observation. Data from Ken-ichi Ueda (iNaturalist).
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Initial systematic search results from EntoGEM (https://entogem.github.io/): (A) Retrieved studies by order. (B) Locations of retrieved dipteran studies illustrating broad geographic scope, especially in tropical areas, which have been underrepresented in prior syntheses of insect decline. (C) Example dipteran data sets identified in initial screening. (Upper) Mosquitoes, trapped at two sites, Maryland, United States (83); (Lower) black flies, Iceland (53).
Fig. 5.
Fig. 5.
Insect diversity. (A) Pennants (Libellulidae): Dragonflies are among the most familiar and popular insects, renowned for their appetite for mosquitoes. (B) Robber flies (Asilidae): These sit-and-wait predators often perch on twigs that allow them to ambush passing prey; accordingly they have enormous eyes. (C) Katydids (Tettigoniidae): This individual is one molt away from having wings long enough to fly (that also will be used to produce its mating song). (D) Bumble bees (Apidae): Important pollinators in temperate, montane, and subpolar regions especially of heaths (including blueberries and cranberries). (E) Wasp moths (Erebidae): Compelling mimics that are hyperdiverse in tropical forests; many are toxic and unpalatable to vertebrates. (F) Leafhoppers (Cicadellidae): A diverse family with 20,000 species, some of which are important plant pests; many communicate with each other by vibrating their messages through a shared substrate. (G) Cuckoo wasps (Chrysididae): Striking armored wasps that enter nests of other bees—virtually impermeable to stings—to lay their eggs in brood cells of a host bee. (H) Tortoise beetles (Chrysomelidae): Mostly tropical plant feeders; this larva is advertising its unpalatability with bold yellow, black, and cream colors. (I) Mantises (Mantidae): These voracious sit-and-wait predators have acute eyesight and rapid predatory strikes; prey are instantly impaled and held in place by the sharp foreleg spines. (J) Emerald moths (Geometridae): Diverse family of primarily forest insects; their caterpillars include the familiar inchworms. (K) Tiger beetles (Cicindelidae): “Tigers” use acute vision and long legs to run down their prey, which are dispatched with their huge jaws. (L) Planthoppers (Fulgoridae): Tropical family of splendid insects, whose snouts are curiously varied and, in a few lineages, account for half the body mass. Images credit: Michael Thomas (photographer).
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References

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