Over a century of data reveal more than 80% decline in butterflies in the Netherlands

Strien, A.J. van; Swaay, Chris van; Liempt, Willy T.F.H. van Strien-van; Poot, Martin; WallisDeVries, Michiel F.

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2019.03.023

Cited by 131 publications

(99 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…In general, we would expect trends in average occupancy to under-estimate trends in average abundance, but that the two metrics would be closely correlated [49][50][51] . Indeed, van Strien et al, when assessing trends in both the occupancy and abundance of butterflies in the Netherlands observed greater changes in average abundance than in average occupancy, but both metrics present an overall negative trend 52 . Similarly, species richness and occupancy can be thought of as alternative ways of summarizing a three dimensional space-timespecies data cube in which the cells of the cube represent the binary presence-absence state 53,54 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Complex long-term biodiversity change among invertebrates, bryophytes and lichens

et al. 2020

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Large-scale biodiversity change is measured largely through the responses of a few taxonomic groups. Much less is known about the trends affecting most invertebrates and other neglected taxa, and it is unclear whether well-studied taxa, such as vertebrates, reflect changes in wider biodiversity. Here, we present and analyse trends in the UK distributions of over 5,000 species of invertebrates, bryophytes and lichens, measured as changes in occupancy. Our results reveal substantial variation in both the magnitude, direction and timing of change over the last forty-five years. Just one of the four major groups analysed, terrestrial non-insect invertebrates, exhibit the declining trend reported among vertebrates and butterflies. Both terrestrial insects and bryophytes & lichens increased in average occupancy. A striking pattern is found among freshwater species, which have undergone a strong recovery since the mid-nineties following two decades of decline. We show that, while average occupancy among most groups appears to have been stable or increasing, there has been substantial change in the relative commonness and rarity of individual species, indicating considerable turnover in community composition. Additionally, large numbers of species experienced substantial declines. Our results suggest a more complex pattern of biodiversity change in the UK than previously reported.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Complex long-term biodiversity change among invertebrates, bryophytes and lichens

et al. 2020

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“…If more sustainable farming systems are going to be implemented, it is essential to maximise the contribution that some invertebrates provide towards pollinating crops, controlling crop pests, and recycling nutrients [2], while also being an important food resource for farmland birds, mammals, and other predatory arthropods. However, there is evidence that the majority of insects are in decline globally [3,4], especially in agricultural systems, attributed to the intensification of agriculture where there is widespread pesticide use [5], along with habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation [6,7]. The steepest declines occurred in the 1970s, and some groups have since stabilised or are even starting to recover (e.g., spiders), yet some continue to decline, including pest natural enemies [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Approaches to Identify the Value of Seminatural Habitats for Conservation Biological Control

Holland

Jeanneret

Moonen

et al. 2020

Insects

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Invertebrates perform many vital functions in agricultural production, but many taxa are in decline, including pest natural enemies. Action is needed to increase their abundance if more sustainable agricultural systems are to be achieved. Conservation biological control (CBC) is a key component of integrated pest management yet has failed to be widely adopted in mainstream agriculture. Approaches to improving conservation biological control have been largely ad hoc. Two approaches are described to improve this process, one based upon pest natural enemy ecology and resource provision while the other focusses on the ecosystem service delivery using the QuESSA (Quantification of Ecological Services for Sustainable Agriculture) project as an example. In this project, a predictive scoring system was developed to show the potential of five seminatural habitat categories to provide biological control, from which predictive maps were generated for Europe. Actual biological control was measured in a series of case studies using sentinel systems (insect or seed prey), trade-offs between ecosystem services were explored, and heatmaps of biological control were generated. The overall conclusion from the QuESSA project was that results were context specific, indicating that more targeted approaches to CBC are needed. This may include designing new habitats or modifying existing habitats to support the types of natural enemies required for specific crops or pests.

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“…A remarkable decline in the number of insect species and in the abundance of insects is currently reported from many places around the world [1][2][3][4][5][6]. In addition to the considerable loss of organisms that are valuable per se, the loss of insects is considered to harm species-interactions [7,8] and related ecosystem processes [9][10][11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flower power in the city: Replacing roadside shrubs by wildflower meadows increases insect numbers and reduces maintenance costs

et al. 2020

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Massive declines in insect biodiversity and biomass are reported from many regions and habitats. In urban areas, creation of native wildflower meadows is one option to support insects and reduce maintenance costs of urban green spaces. However, benefits for insect conservation may depend on previous land use, and the size and location of new wildflower meadows. We show effects of conversion of roadside plantings-from exotic shrubs into wildflower meadows-on (1) the abundance of 13 arthropod taxa-Opiliones,

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Over a century of data reveal more than 80% decline in butterflies in the Netherlands

Cited by 131 publications

References 26 publications

Complex long-term biodiversity change among invertebrates, bryophytes and lichens

Complex long-term biodiversity change among invertebrates, bryophytes and lichens

Approaches to Identify the Value of Seminatural Habitats for Conservation Biological Control

Flower power in the city: Replacing roadside shrubs by wildflower meadows increases insect numbers and reduces maintenance costs

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