6,000 years of human impact on the biodiversity of insects

    1 July 2022

    A network analysis of fossil insect data from northwestern Europe shows two major shifts in taxonomic biodiversity: one at the start of the current warm period (Holocene) 10,000 years ago, and another about 4,000 years ago. This work was made possible by research infrastructures funded by the Swedish Research Council and Umeå University.

    The longhorn beetle Rusticoclytus rusticus on a barn near Umeå.

    Photo: Philip Buckland

    "These results are particularly interesting because they were observed at locations away from areas of direct human impact (i.e. archaeological sites), indicating that human changes to the landscape have profound and pervasive effects on ecosystems and biodiversity. Thus, these results have important implications for current insect biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management".

    Read more at umu.se/en

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