Anannya Roy, Amity University Kolkata
Insects come under the Phylum Arthropod, ironically the largest phylum in the Animal Kingdom. Over the past several decades the number of species has declined. Initially, it was believed that this was happening due to habitat loss or excessive use of pesticides, but it came off as a bit of a shock when researchers in the Western USA found out that this is due to climate change.
Jessica Ware, an entomologist at the American Museum of Natural History, stated that until and unless serious steps are taken to control Global Warming, entire ecosystems would disappear. The disappearance of even a small species misbalances the entire map of our ecosystem. Monarch butterfly species are showing a steep decline in population, especially in the densely populated and intensively farmed areas. The plant population is also affected because insects serve as important pollinators helping in carrying out the process of fertilization.
The research was conducted by Shapiro and Matthew Foster, insect entomologists who gathered up data on Butterfly counts over the past 42 years from the North American Butterfly Association. 15 years of data on sightings of plants and animals, including butterflies was also incorporated from the iNaturalist web portal. The fates of 450 species of butterflies from 70 different locations across the Western US were tracked. The results were derogatory. The butterfly population dropped an average of 1.6% per year between 1977 and 2018. There are predictions that in the coming decades some species may completely disappear from the face of the earth. A pattern was noted that, in areas with warmer climates where temperatures are more, the rate of insect disappearance is faster. A logical conclusion was drawn that warm weather disturbs the insect’s breeding cycle.
This research was important because it compiled all of the messy data that were scattered here and there and provided lots of insights into in what ways we are the ones responsible for the apocalypse. This is a waking call for all of us to care for Mother Nature and protect our environment from the dark future of the Post-apocalyptic dystopian world.
Metaphase: Global warming is related to the extinction of a lot of insects, including butterflies as a warm climate is responsible for a faster disappearance of insects.
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