Insects in a Changing Environment

Environmental change has been seen as an increasingly focused area for ecological study, and one for which insect populations can act as a sensitive indicator. This latest volume in the RESL Symposium Series offers papers focusing on change in climate, pollution and atmosphere, and land use, and their impact on insect populations and distribution.

The 1992 Rio Summit highlighted international concerns about threats to the environment, through anthropogenic changes in climate, levels of pollutants and land use. Such global changes impinge on all aspects of life on Earth. Their effects on insects, the dominant animals in terms of numbers of species and total biomass, has major implications for human life and thus deserves special attention. The 17th Symposium of the Royal Entomological Society was the first forum set up specifically to bring together experts working in the many aspects of this field.
This volume begins by setting out the magnitude of the task facing entomologists involved in unravelling the complex interactions affected by environmental change. Subsequent chapters consider (i) aspects of climate change with respect to insects from an agricultural and medical perspective, (ii) how increased levels of gases, heavy metals and other pollutants may affect the success of insects and their relationships with plants, and (iii) the effects of changing land use patterns in temperate and tropical regions on insect abundance, diversity and probability of extinction.
It is clear that much needs to be done in order to understand the interactions between different aspects of the environment and insects, their food sources, enemies and competitors in sufficient detail to be able to predict the effects of environmental changes. This volume will form a significant section of the backdrop against which progress can be made, and will be of interest to all those concerned with the impact of environmental changes on insects.