Insect populations drop even without direct human interference, a new study finds
Even in areas relatively undisturbed by human activity, insect populations are on the decline, with climate change as a likely culprit. That's the finding of new research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
The study, published in the journal Ecology, calculated the density of flying insects during 15 summers, between 2004–2024, in a remote meadow in the Colorado mountains.
The bugs collected included common flies — and a wide range of other, mostly winged species.
The insect populations were found to have declined by an average 6.6% annually — a 72.4% drop over the 20-year period.
source:
https://www.npr.org/2025/09/12/nx-s1-5535551/insect-populations-human-interference-study
This is something I began to notice a few years ago. If one were to travel an hour north of Winnipeg to a cabin, the cars grill used to be littered with insect guts. Today it's not nearly as bad. There just seems to be a lack of insects in recent years.
70% of he North American insect population is gone. This is not good news, as insects are part of the food chain. How much longer can we go on, before people start to die out in droves?
Threaded Mode