Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: Insects appeared more than 400 million years ago and they represent the richest and most diverse taxonomic group with several million species. Yet, under the combined effect of the loss of natural habitats, the intensification of agriculture with massive use of pesticides, global warming and biological invasions, insects show alarming signs of decline. Although difficult to quantify, species extinction and population reductions are confirmed for many ecosystems. This results in a loss of services such as the pollination of plants, including food crops, the recycling of organic matter, the supply of goods such as honey and the stability of food webs. It is therefore urgent to halt the decline of Insects. We recommend implementing long-term monitoring of populations, tackling the causes of insect decline by reducing the use of synthetic insecticides, preserving natural habitats, and reinventing a positive relationship between humans and insects.
Source: Comptes Rendus Biologies
DOI: 10.5802/crbiol.37
Institutions: Université de Bordeaux, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, UMR BIOdiversity, GEnes & Communities, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Modèles Insectes de l'Immunité Innée, Institut de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, Université de Strasbourg, Institut Pasteur, Génomique évolutive, modélisation et santé, Department of Virology, Centre d'Écologie Fonctionnelle et Évolutive, Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, Scientific Centre of Monaco, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA Paris-Saclay - Etablissement de Saclay, Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, CEA Paris-Saclay, Biology of Infection, École Pratique des Hautes Études, Sorbonne Université, Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle
Language: English
Topic: Plant and animal studies
Domain: Life Sciences
SDG: Life on land
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W3124935039