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|    ScienceDaily to All    |
|    Park rangers use butterflies to take pla    |
|    02 May 22 22:30:42    |
      MSGID: 1:317/3 6270b040       PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08       TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08        Park rangers use butterflies to take planet's pulse in a biodiversity       hotspot                Date:        May 2, 2022        Source:        Florida Museum of Natural History        Summary:        For the last decade, biologists have documented a worrying decline        in insect abundance, which some fear may prelude an arthropod        apocalypse.               These studies, however, are primarily carried out in temperature        regions while the tropics, which harbor the vast majority of        insect species, largely remains a black box. In a new study,        biologists turn to the aid of park rangers in Ecuador's Yasuni'        National Park -- considered one of the most biodiverse ecosystems        on the planet -- to assess changes to insect abundance.                            FULL STORY       ==========================================================================       For the last decade, biologists have documented a worrying decline       in insect abundance, which some fear may prelude an arthropod       apocalypse. These studies, however, are primarily carried out in       temperature regions while the tropics, which harbor the vast majority       of insect species, largely remains a black box.                     ==========================================================================       In 2017, a group of scientists raised alarm bells by showing that flying       insects had declined in Germany by more than 70% in the three preceding       decades. Studies before and since then have shown similar patterns       in insects on a global scale. But with 1 million known species --       and conservative estimates indicating there are millions more awaiting       discovery -- there aren't nearly enough entomologists to document the       full scale of insect diversity, much less how their populations change       over time.              In a new study, entomologists turn to the aid of park rangers in       Ecuador's Yasuni' National Park, broadly considered to be one of the most       biodiverse ecosystems on the planet. Researchers, students and park staff       have been actively engaged in monitoring butterfly abundance in Yasuni'       since 2016 in an ongoing project that flips the script on the way most       survey efforts are conducted in the tropics.              "This study has obvious benefits for science and conservation, but it was       also important that it include social benefits for the people we worked       with," said lead author Maria Checa, a researcher at the Pontifical       Catholic University of Ecuador and a former doctoral student at the       Florida Museum of Natural History.              "We still know so little about the impacts of environmental change in       tropical areas, because we simply don't have enough researchers with       the expertise to study these regions," she said. "We need to empower       local actors with this knowledge, because they are key stakeholders in       conservation." Building alternatives to parachute biology Scientists who       focus on conservation often run into a roadblock early in their endeavors:       Most of the world's biodiversity is unevenly distributed in the tropics,       but the majority of researchers who study it primarily live in temperate       regions. As a result, the flora and fauna of many industrialized countries       are relatively well-studied and benefit from extensive monitoring       programs, like the decades-long survey of insect declines in Germany.                            ==========================================================================       A similar United Kingdom program using butterflies as a proxy for the       health of insect communities was launched in 1976 and has since been       adopted in at least 19 other European countries. These ongoing surveys       offer a wealth of data for scientists, but the patterns they reveal       provide only a small snapshot of the changes occurring globally.              "In Great Britain, you're dealing with less than 60 butterfly species,       while in Yasuni' alone there's likely more than 1,500," said senior       author Keith Willmott, curator and director of the Florida Museum's       McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity.              Scientists from many industrialized countries have tried to make up for       this imbalance by conducting short-term projects in tropical ecosystems,       often paying local residents to help with surveys and collections. This       practice, sometimes called parachute biology, can yield important       scientific insights.              But when the project concludes or the funding runs dry, researchers       return to their institutions, and residents return to their normal lives.              Willmott says these limited surveys will be insufficient to effectively       monitor long-term population trends and help stave off what is currently       the worst extinction event since the death of the dinosaurs.              "Trying to make sense of abundance patterns in a tropical community where       there's less climate seasonality and a myriad of complex interactions       taking place is incredibly complicated and requires long-term datasets,"       he said.                            ==========================================================================       Getting these programs started and keeping them going, however, isn't       always an option in remote regions where human populations are scarce. So       when park rangers expressed interest in helping survey butterflies in       Yasuni' in 2015, Willmott saw the potential for a broad-scale partnership.              "Ecuador is dotted with national parks that have pristine forests, and       part of the job responsibilities for many park rangers is to conduct       biodiversity monitoring. It just seemed to us that this was a potential       solution to the expense and logistics of managing these projects,"       he said.              Butterflies are an ideal early warning system Even with the help of park       rangers, there is no realistic way to feasibly sample the diversity of       an entire rainforest. Instead, biologists rely on indicator species,       organisms that are broadly distributed and easy to find but are sensitive       enough to environmental change that they can be used to infer how related       groups are faring.              For insects, those indicator species are butterflies.              "There are a number of reasons they make good indicators," Willmott       said. "They can be found just about everywhere, they're incredibly diverse       and they reflect what's going on in other organisms." Butterflies occupy       a central role in mazelike ecosystem webs. Most rely exclusively on       plants for food, and plants -- in turn -- rely on butterflies for       pollination. Caterpillars and butterflies also make a good meal for       predators higher on the food chain. If you take butterflies out of       the equation, the webs that bind natural communities together begin       to unravel.              This makes them the perfect litmus test for gauging ecosystem health.              And butterflies have another advantage that helps them stand out from       the crowd. "From a practical point of view, there's no question that       they are by far the easiest insect group to identify," Willmott said. In       a place as diverse as Ecuador, this last component is imperative.              Park rangers collect and compile diversity data Working with Checa,       Willmott, co-author Sofia Nogales from Ecuador's National Institute of       Biodiversity and their colleagues, the rangers quickly learned how to       collect butterflies with bait traps and identify the most common species.              Since 2017, they've been conducting regular surveys with comparable       accuracy rates to those of trained field biologists. But their       contribution to the study didn't end there.              "The rangers wanted to be more involved with the project, so we started       talking about writing up a manuscript together," Checa said. "We set up       a workshop in Quito in which we provided computers and taught them how       to run basic statistical analyses on the butterfly data." For Checa,       the project represents an important shift in the way biodiversity       monitoring is carried out in her home country of Ecuador, one that she       hopes will help protect sensitive ecosystems and give voice to those       who inhabit them.              "The people who live in rural areas near protected forests often lack       resources and opportunities for formal training. It's challenging       for many to even finish high school," she said. "We're talking about       decentralizing knowledge from academic institutions to local people and       from cities to rural areas." The Yasuni' National Park rangers, three       of whom are co-authors on this study, are currently in the process of       analyzing the data they continue to collect, which they plan to publish       in an upcoming article. "We are proud to be the first park rangers in       Ecuador to carry out a successful long-term monitoring program -- this       project has enriched our knowledge of biodiversity and the importance       of insects in ecosystems, especially butterflies, helping us to better       carry out our work," said co-author Leslie Bustos.              Ongoing support from the national park's administration has also been and       continues to be critical for the project's success. Checa and Willmott       hope to expand the butterfly monitoring to additional protected areas       within Ecuador in the near future.              The researchers published their findings in Insect Conservation and       Diversity.                     ==========================================================================       Story Source: Materials provided by       Florida_Museum_of_Natural_History. Note: Content may be edited for style       and length.                     ==========================================================================       Related Multimedia:        * Butterflies_and_a_map       ==========================================================================       Journal Reference:        1. Maria F. Checa, Sofia Nogales, Patricio A. Salazar, Leslie Bustos,        Vernardo Ojeda, Alcy Bustos, Keith R. Willmott. Implementing a novel        approach to long‐term monitoring of butterfly communities        in the Neotropics. Insect Conservation and Diversity, 2022; DOI:        10.1111/ icad.12567       ==========================================================================              Link to news story:       https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/05/220502142625.htm              --- up 9 weeks, 10 hours, 50 minutes        * Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (1:317/3)       SEEN-BY: 15/0 106/201 114/705 123/120 129/330 331 153/7715 218/700       SEEN-BY: 229/110 111 317 400 426 428 470 664 700 292/854 298/25 305/3       SEEN-BY: 317/3 320/219 396/45       PATH: 317/3 229/426           |
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