Abstract
Being ectothermal, insects are predicted to suffer more severely from climate change than warm-blooded animals. We forecast possible changes in diversity and composition of butterflies, grasshoppers and dragonflies in Belgium under increasingly severe climate change scenarios for the year 2100. Butterfly and grasshopper diversity were predicted to decrease significantly in all scenarios and species-rich locations were predicted to move towards higher altitudes. Dragonfly diversity was predicted to decrease significantly in all scenarios, but dragonfly-rich locations were predicted to move upwards only in the less severe scenarios. The largest turnover rates were predicted to occur at higher altitudes for butterflies and grasshoppers, but at intermediate altitudes for dragonflies. We discuss possible conservation and policy measures to mitigate the putative strond impact of climate change on insect diversity in Belgium
| Original language | Dutch |
|---|---|
| Journal | Natuur.Focus |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Pages (from-to) | 107-111 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Publication status | Published - 2008 |
Thematic List 2020
- Water
Taxonomic list
- butterflies (Lepidoptera)
- dragonflies (Odonata)
- crickets and grasshoppers (Orthoptera)
Policy
- Climate policy (inc. Biomass energy with carbon capture and storage)
Geographic list
- Flanders