Insects that play a key role in East Asia's ecosystems declined sharply over the past two decades, according to new research — a trend is also seen elsewhere.
Cabbage moths, corn borers and other plant-eating insects crucial to ecosystems have declined dramatically in East Asia over the past two decades — along with dragonflies and other predator insects that eat them, according to aA team of scientists at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Beijing spent 18 years tracking the migration patterns of millions of insects belonging to nearly 100 species.
Each year from 2003 through 2020, the scientists tracked insects flying over Beihuang Island in Bohai Bay between China and the Korean Peninsula. Using radar and light traps that attract insects flying at high altitudes, they found that as the plant-eating insects declined, so did the insects that eat them. Eventually, the absence of the predator species let others expand unchecked, creating ripple effects down the food chain.
The iconic wolves in Yellowstone National Park have come to symbolize how important predators are for biodiversity. In the 20th century, wolves were absent from the park for 70 years. Without its top predator, the ecosystem fell out of balance; elk and deer overgrazed trees that were essential shelter for birds. In 1995, a group of Canadian wolves was released into the park. Just a few years after the wolves’ reintroduction, the elk and deer had declined, while trees and birds had rebounded.
As the top levels of the food chain disappear, the lower levels — such as aphids and caterpillars — overindulge on their food sources, throwing plants out of balance, too.“These predators who sit at the apex of a food web are very vulnerable to extinction,” said David Wagner, an ecologist at the University of Connecticut. “They need all the pieces down below to remain intact. They’re among the most vulnerable species on the planet.
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