Global warming changes butterfly habitat and behavior

Butterflies inhabit every continent except Antarctica. Flitting from flower to flower, they assist in pollination. People are awed by their fragile beauty but more importantly, butterflies indicate the health of the environment. Cold-blooded, butterflies are dependent upon temperature, just as are rodents, birds, frogs and other insects. Measuring butterfly response to warming temperature helps researchers all over the world gauge the effect of climate change, and researchers are finding that butterflies are seeking new habitat to find the temperatures they need.

In an article titled, “Butterflies Across Europe Face Crisis as Climate Change Looms,” researchers warn that Europe will lose much of its biodiversity due to global warming as indicated by a study of butterfly distribution conducted by the Climatic Risk Atlas of European Butterflies, which involves hundreds of European scientists. One of the authors of the study, Dr Josef Settele, said: “The Atlas shows for the first time how the majority of European butterflies might respond to climate change. Most species will have to shift their distribution radically.”

In Great Britain, declines in butterflies led researchers to consider saving the butterflies by moving them to cooler areas. Researchers at Durham University caught Marbled White and Small Skipper butterflies in North Yorkshire, and transplanted them to County Durham and Northumberland where, eight years later, the species were found to be thriving. Professor Brian Huntley of Durham University hailed this experiment in “assisted colonization” as a possible role in wildlife conservation.

Read the rest of the article at the source.

Source: Natural News

Tags: Europe & Russia

Category: News