Global Warming Causes Changes in Swiss Insect Fauna

How has the distribution of insects in Switzerland changed over the past 40 years? The range of many species has expanded, while that of a similar number has contracted. In particular, cold-adapted species have lost ground. These are the findings published in the journal -Nature Communications-. Various studies conducted in Switzerland and elsewhere give cause for concern that climateand land-use change are causing significant adverse effects to insect fauna (-insect decline-). For this reason, the research institutes Agroscope, WSL, FiBL and the Swiss information centre for fauna, -info fauna-, have launched The researchers present their first findings in the journal Nature Communications . For this, they analysed 1.5 million records collected throughout Switzerland from 1980 onwards by insect-savvy laypersons and experts on the distribution of butterflies, grasshoppers and dragonand damselflies. No general decrease noted The findings reveal that there are both winners and losers in Switzerland among the insect species studied.