Declining insect abundance and diversity in Germany 2008-2017

Insect abundance and diversity Germany 2008-2017 Nature — (a) Insect diversity (total number of species across all grassland or forest sites) (b), biomass, (c) abundance and (d) number of species (d) in 30 forest and 150 grassland sites across Germany

In this article insect abundance data collected from 150 grassland and 140 forest sites in 3 regions of Germany from 2008 to 2017 was analyzed. A total of about 2,700 species were identified. ), from standardized inventories taken between 2008 and 2017 at 150 grassland and 140 forest sites in 3 regions of Germany. Insect abundance, total biomass of insects, number of species and diversity were calculated for wach year. It was found that diversity in grasslands and forests decreased over time, indicating loss of species across sites and regions. In annually sampled grasslands, biomass, abundance and number of species declined by 67%, 78% and 34%, respectively. In 30 forest sites with annual inventories, biomass and number of species, but not abundance, decreased by 41% and 36%, respectively.

Seibold, S., Gossner, M.M., Simons, N.K. et al. Arthropod decline in grasslands and forests is associated with landscape-level drivers. Nature 574, 671–674 (2019) doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1684-3

From Our Files

Atmospheric CH4 concentration 1980 to 2020

Methane emissions from U.S. oil and gas supply chain reduces carbon advantage of natural gas

A new study has concluded that methane emissions from the U.S. oil and natural gas supply chain in 2015 amounted to about 2.3% of gross U.S. gas production. Emissions of this magnitude significantly increase the GHG footprint of natural gas power generation and erode the carbon advantage of natural gas over coal.

Correlation of temperature and CO2 for last 420,000 years from Vostok

EC Perspective: Accounting for 800,000 years of climate change

Approximately 800,000 years ago something changed in the Earth’s climate system that led to the climate then following a series of approximately 100,000 year cycles. Small, predictable changes in the Earth’s orbit about the Sun act as triggers for the glacial and interglacial periods, but other factors such as ice sheet volume, CO2 concentration, and biological feedback mechanisms are also involved.

Arctic temperature anomaly oct nov 2016 NSIDC

Rapid Arctic warming connected to cooler winters in Northern mid-latitudes

A recent study presents evidence that regional warming over the Arctic Ocean can affect mid-latitude Northern Hemisphere continental weather. This study shows that there are two key Arctic regions where regional warming can induce distinguishable cold winters over northern continents. Warming over the Barents–Kara Sea region is likely to lead to East Asian cooling, whereas northern North America cooling is closely related to warming over the East Siberian–Chukchi Sea region.

Thermokarst distribution in northern circumpolar region

Geospatial analysis reveals 20% of northern permafrost region susceptible to abrupt permafrost thawing

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