Research Article

Extensive regional variation in the phenology of insects and their response to temperature across North America

Published: 2023-5

Journal: Ecology

DOI: 10.1002/ecy.4036

Abstract

Climate change models often assume similar responses to temperatures across the range of a species, but local adaptation or phenotypic plasticity can lead plants and animals to respond differently to temperature in different parts of their range. To date, there have been few tests of this assumption at the scale of continents, so it is unclear if this is a large‐scale problem. Here, we examined the assumption that insect taxa show similar responses to temperature at 96 sites in grassy habitats across North America. We sampled insects with Malaise traps during 2019–2021 (N= 1041 samples) and examined the biomass of insects in relation to temperature and time of season. Our samples mostly contained Diptera (33%), Lepidoptera (19%), Hymenoptera (18%), and Coleoptera (10%). We found strong regional differences in the phenology of insects and their response to temperature, even within the same taxonomic group, habitat type, and time of season. For example, the biomass of nematoceran flies increased across the season in the central part of the continent, but it only showed a small increase in the Northeast and a seasonal decline in the Southeast and West. At a smaller scale, insect biomass at different traps operating on the same days was correlated up to ~75 km apart. Large‐scale geographic and phenological variation in insect biomass and abundance has not been studied well, and it is a major source of controversy in previous analyses of insect declines that have aggregated studies from different locations and time periods. Our study illustrates that large‐scale predictions about changes in insect populations, and their causes, will need to incorporate regional and taxonomic differences in the response to temperature.

Faculty Members

  • Jennifer Houtz - Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Ithaca New York USA
  • Peter O. Dunn - Department of Biological Sciences University of Wisconsin‐Milwaukee Milwaukee Wisconsin USA
  • Danielle M. Racke - Claytor Nature Center University of Lynchburg Bedford Virginia USA
  • Thomas Wassmer - Department of Biology Siena Heights University Adrian Michigan USA
  • Lindsay Schulz - Cultural and Environmental Resource Management Central Washington University Ellensburg Washington USA
  • Megan Hiebert - Birds Canada Port Rowan ON Canada
  • Andrew Laughlin - Department of Environmental Studies University of North Carolina – Asheville Asheville North Carolina USA
  • Jeannine A. Randall - Department of Ecosystem Science and Management University of Northern British Columbia Prince George BC Canada
  • Ian S. Pearse - U.S. Geological Survey Fort Collins Science Center Ft. Collins Colorado USA
  • Megan Weinberger - Department of Biology University of Iowa Iowa City Iowa USA
  • Robert G. Clark - Department of Biology University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon SK CanadaWildlife Research Division Environment and Climate Change Canada Saskatoon SK Canada
  • Linda A. Whittingham - Department of Biological Sciences University of Wisconsin‐Milwaukee Milwaukee Wisconsin USA
  • A. Rose Ruegg - Department of Environmental Studies University of North Carolina – Asheville Asheville North Carolina USA
  • Kyle Cameron - Birds Canada Port Rowan ON Canada
  • Kathleen Uvino - Environmental Science University of Jamestown Jamestown North Dakota USA
  • Colleen Miller - Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Ithaca New York USA
  • Kamal J. K. Gandhi - D.B. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources University of Georgia Athens Georgia USA
  • Kevin C. Fraser - Department of Biological Sciences University of Manitoba Manitoba MB Canada
  • Ethan D. Clotfelter - Department of Biology and Environmental Studies Amherst College Amherst Massachusetts USA
  • Tara L. Imlay - Pacific Wildlife Research Centre, Environment and Climate Change Canada Delta BC CanadaDepartment of Biology Dalhousie University Halifax NS Canada
  • Lynn Siefferman - Department of Biology Appalachian State University Boone North Carolina USA
  • Lisha L. Berzins - Department of Biology University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon SK Canada
  • Ivana Schoepf - Department of Biology Queen's University Kingston ON CanadaUniversity of Alberta Augustana Campus Camrose AB Canada
  • Fanie Pelletier - Département de Biologie Université de Sherbrooke Sherbrooke QC Canada
  • Andrew P. Jacobson - Department of Environment and Sustainability Catawba College Salisbury North Carolina USA
  • Andrea Kautz - Carnegie Museum of Natural History Powdermill Nature Reserve Rector Pennsylvania USA
  • Stephen C. Lougheed - Department of Biology Queen's University Kingston ON Canada
  • Derek Sikes - University of Alaska Museum University of Alaska Fairbanks Fairbanks Alaska USA
  • Mitchell Sadowski - Biology Department Westfield State University Westfield Massachusetts USA
  • Brenda Molano‐Flores - Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Champaign Illinois USA
  • Brian D. Inouye - Department of Biological Science Florida State University Tallahassee Florida USARocky Mountain Biological Laboratory Crested Butte Colorado USA
  • Claire Houchen - Department of Biological Sciences George Washington University Washington DC USA
  • Christy Juteau - A Rocha Canada Surrey BC Canada
  • Malcolm A. Barnard - Institute of Marine Science University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Morehead City North Carolina USADepartment of Biology Baylor University Waco Texas USA
  • Jessica M. Orlofske - Biological Sciences Department University of Wisconsin‐Parkside Kenosha Wisconsin USA
  • Natasha Barlow - Birds Canada Port Rowan ON Canada
  • Caroline Killian - Environmental Science Program and Biology Department Trinity College Hartford Connecticut USA
  • Marc Bélisle - Département de Biologie Université de Sherbrooke Sherbrooke QC Canada
  • Christy A. Morrissey - Department of Biology University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon SK Canada
  • Scott Rush - Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture Mississippi State University Mississippi State Mississippi USA
  • Matthew L. Richardson - Center for Urban Research, Engagement and Scholarship University of the District of Columbia Washington DC USA
  • Insiyaa Ahmed - U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Rivers Project Office West Alton Missouri USA
  • John D. Styrsky - Department of Biology University of Lynchburg Lynchburg Virginia USA
  • Conor C. Taff - Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Ithaca New York USA
  • Dany Garant - Département de Biologie Université de Sherbrooke Sherbrooke QC Canada
  • Amber L. Pitt - Environmental Science Program and Biology Department Trinity College Hartford Connecticut USA
  • Russell D. Dawson - Department of Ecosystem Science and Management University of Northern British Columbia Prince George BC Canada
  • Elizabeth Long - Mohonk Preserve New Paltz New York USA
  • Thomas N. Sheehan - The Jones Center at Ichauway Newton Georgia USA
  • Kara Cromwell - Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
  • Thomas J. Benson - Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Champaign Illinois USA
  • T. Anders Brown - Environmental Science Program and Biology Department Trinity College Hartford Connecticut USA
  • Kristin Jayd - Department of Entomology University of Maryland College Park Maryland USA
  • Jennifer J. Uehling - Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Ithaca New York USA
  • Olivia Rooney - Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Ithaca New York USA
  • Elliot Kinnear - Department of Biological Sciences University of Manitoba Manitoba MB Canada
  • Mark Stanback - Department of Biology Davidson College Davidson North Carolina USA
  • Elise Armstrong - Department of Biology Siena Heights University Adrian Michigan USA
  • Joseph P. Poston - Department of Biology Catawba College Salisbury North Carolina USA
  • Sadie J. Ryan - Department of Geography and Emerging Pathogens Institute University of Florida Gainesville Florida USA
  • John Wenzel - Carnegie Museum of Natural History Powdermill Nature Reserve Rector Pennsylvania USA
  • Kimberly J. Komatsu - Smithsonian Environmental Research Center Edgewater Maryland USA
  • Kendrick Fowler - Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Program Ghent New York USA
  • Michelle Jackson - A Rocha Canada Surrey BC Canada
  • David W. Inouye - Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory Crested Butte Colorado USADepartment of Biology University of Maryland College Park Maryland USA
  • Melissa Cady - Alaska Peninsula and Becharof National Wildlife Refuges U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service King Salmon Alaska USA
  • Elsie Denton - US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service Rangeland and Meadow Forage Unit Burns Oregon USA
  • Xuan Chen - Department of Biology Salisbury University Salisbury Maryland USA
  • Ryan Leys - Birds Canada Port Rowan ON CanadaDepartment of Biology University of Waterloo Waterloo ON Canada
  • Brenna Shea - Missoula Butterfly House and Insectarium Missoula Montana USA
  • Valerie Levesque‐Beaudin - Centre for Biodiversity Genomics University of Guelph Guelph ON Canada
  • Jen Marangelo - Missoula Butterfly House and Insectarium Missoula Montana USA
  • Kathryn Weglarz - Biology Department Westfield State University Westfield Massachusetts USA
  • Chloe K. Boynton - Pacific Wildlife Research Centre, Environment and Climate Change Canada Delta BC Canada
  • Stuart Mackenzie - Birds Canada Port Rowan ON Canada
  • Emony Nicholls - Ministry of Forests Lands and Natural Resource Operations Fort St. John BC Canada
  • Andrew Forbes - Department of Biology University of Iowa Iowa City Iowa USA
  • Kirk Larsen - Department of Biology Luther College Decorah Iowa USA

Themes

  • Climate change
  • Local adaptation
  • Ecological implications of climate models
  • Insect responses to temperature
  • Phenotypic plasticity

Categories

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