Abstract
Long-term biodiversity monitoring is essential for unveiling the impact of environmental changes on local fauna. Although private local records can contribute significantly to biodiversity evaluation, they are seldom published in scientific journals. In this study, a retired scientist recorded the longhorn beetles (Distiniidae and Cerambycidae) present in Ito on the Izu peninsula, Japan, for 12 years. The records showed the dynamical changes in longhorn beetles, which indicated the environmental changes around the survey site over 12 years. We also compared the longhorn beetle composition in the Ito study site to those in the survey records in 13 other locations in Kanto, Japan. We found that the species composition in Ito was stable throughout the 12 years, while the general composition in Ito reflected the land-use pattern of urban areas and the collecting methods. The species composition in the Ito study site differed from that in some of the other satoyama locations (human-influenced natural environment), but this was possibly due to methodological differences. Long-term backyard biodiversity surveys, especially those conducted by retired professionals, can play important roles in future investigations of insect groups, such as longhorn beetles, even if they are not agricultural pests nor endangered species.
Highlights
Anthropogenic activity is causing drastic environmental changes, leading to the current sixth mass extinction on Earth [1]
Long-term biodiversity monitoring is of critical importance to investigate how these anthropogenic impacts affect the local fauna and, what changes in the local fauna can tell us about environmental degradation [2–4]
The abundance and species composition of longhorn beetle communities are strongly affected by the surrounding environment, especially tree composition (e.g., [10, 11])
Summary
Anthropogenic activity is causing drastic environmental changes, leading to the current sixth mass extinction on Earth [1]. Long-term biodiversity monitoring is of critical importance to investigate how these anthropogenic impacts affect the local fauna and, what changes in the local fauna can tell us about environmental degradation [2–4]. The long-term monitoring of important agricultural pest insects [5, 6]) and iconic conservation priority species, such as butterflies [7], is well established, regular monitoring surveys have seldom been undertaken for other species groups. Most insect groups, which do not outbreak in agricultural farmlands or are not endangered, may have important roles in monitoring anthropogenic alterations to the environment.
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