Moth Diversity Research Articles

Host Range Expansion of Nest-Parasitic Moths Pyralis regalis and Hypsopygia mauritialis in Social Wasp Nests: New Findings and Implications for Biological Control

Parasitic moths are common in social wasp (Hymenoptera) nests, attacking many species of Polistinae and a few species of Vespinae. In the Republic of Korea, two moth species are known to parasitize the brood of Polistes rothneyi koreanus: Pyralis regalis (Pyralidae) and Anatrachyntis japonica (Cosmopterigidae). Although previously reported elsewhere, a novel case of parasitization was recently documented in the Republic of Korea, in which Hypsopygia mauritialis (Pyralidae) was identified in the nests of social wasps. Pyralis regalis is the most common parasitic moth in the Republic of Korea, feeding on the nests of 11 species of social wasps, mostly the Korean Vespa species. To that list of hosts, we add a species of Dolichovespula and two species of Polistes. Parasitism of Vespa velutina nigrithorax, an invasive alien hornet, by both P. regalis and H. mauritialis, was observed for the first time. However, their potential to control invasive alien hornets is expected to be low. This study provides new insights into the diversity of nest-parasitic moths in social wasp nests and their hosts in the Republic of Korea, and highlights the potential for these moths to impact pest populations.

Prominent moths (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae) of Colombia.

Based on literature review, curatorial work in national and international collections, information available on online databases, and field work conducted from 2017 to 2022, we provide the first checklist for the family Notodontidae in Colombia. A total of 515 species (51 endemics), 122 genera, 7 subfamilies as well as 108 new records for Colombia are presented. These data position Colombia as the country with the third highest diversity of prominent moths in the world, based on current knowledge. Furthermore, 239 known hostplants are listed for 91 species. The distribution map of the family shows the highest concentration of national records in the Andean and Pacific regions. Future surveys in less explored zones, long-term monitoring, expansion and maintenance of biological collections, and working collaboratively with communities will surely increase the known diversity as well as the conservation of prominent moths in Colombia.

Floral enhancement of arable field margins increases moth abundance and diversity

Moth populations have declined across large parts of north-western Europe since the mid-20th century due, in part, to agricultural intensification. Agri-environment schemes (AES) are widely implemented across Europe to protect biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. Grass field margins enriched with wildflowers typically out-perform grass-only margins in terms of increasing insect abundance and diversity. However, the effect of wildflower enrichment on moths remains largely unstudied. Here, the relative importance of larval hostplants and nectar resources for adult moths within AES field margins are investigated. Two treatments and a control were compared: (i) a plain grass mix, the control, (ii) a grass mix enriched with only moth-pollinated flowers, and (iii) a grass mix enriched with 13 wildflower species. Abundance, species richness and Shannon diversity were up to 1.4, 1.8 and 3.5 times higher, respectively, in the wildflower treatment compared to plain grass. The difference in diversity between treatments became greater in the second year. There was no difference in total abundance, richness or diversity between the plain grass treatment and grass enriched with moth-pollinated flowers. The increase in abundance and diversity in the wildflower treatment was due primarily to the provision of larval hostplants, with nectar provision playing a smaller role. The relative abundance of species whose larval hostplants included sown wildflowers increased in the second year, suggesting colonisation of the new habitat.Implications for insect conservation.We show that, at the farm scale, moth diversity can be greatly enhanced and abundance moderately enhanced by sowing diverse wildflower margins, providing these insects with both larval hostplants and floral resources, compared to grass-only margins.

Can reintroduction of beavers improve insect biodiversity?

Ecosystem engineering species, such as beavers, may help the restoration of biodiversity. Through the building of dams and lodges and altering the natural hydrology, beavers change the habitat structure and create multiple habitats that facilitate a wide variety of other organisms including terrestrial invertebrate communities. Here we study the effect of beaver reintroduction in Klosterheden in Denmark on biomass of flying invertebrates and diversity of moths. Further, aerial photos were used to assess riparian structure and productivity using the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). Our findings show that the presence of beavers affected flying invertebrate biomass, but that this was dependent on time of the year. Further, a strong effect of presence of beavers was found on diversity of moths. The results also show an increase in vegetation productivity and structural heterogeneity at sites with presence of beavers. Overall, our results demonstrate the importance of beavers as important ecosystem engineers that affect invertebrate species composition and abundance, as well as riparian structure and productivity.

Response of moth communities (Lepidoptera) to forest management strategies after disturbance

Spruce forests face many threats such as climate change and bark beetle outbreaks. Yet, bark beetle dynamics have a long co-evolutionary history strongly linked to spruce forest structural dynamics. Disturbed spruce forest sites resulting from bark beetle outbreaks therefore should not be regarded as degraded land, but as early successional stages following natural forest dynamics. Three post-bark-beetle disturbance sites and one closed-canopy site in the Bavarian Forest and Ĺ umava National Parks were investigated with the focus on moth communities. The three disturbed sites had undergone different post-disturbance management regimes, with one being treated by salvage logging, while at the other two forest sites deadwood was kept in the forest. To avoid the spread of bark beetles, however, the bark of dead trees was either gouged or removed. The aim was to determine how many moths can be found at the undisturbed and disturbed forest sites and if differences in community composition can be explained by different management regimes. The results highlight that natural forest disturbance can increase moth diversity, especially by favouring species that are associated with open and shrub habitats. Many rare and endangered species benefit from bark beetle outbreaks, indicating that accepting natural forest dynamics is an important part of conservation management. Post-bark beetle management seems to have a minor effect on moth communities.

Edge effect in plantation patches based on moth diversity

Edge effect in plantation patches based on moth diversity

The diversity of moths (Erebidae: Arctiinae: Arctiini) from threatened mountain cloud forests in the Mesoamerican biodiversity hotspot

The diversity of moths (Erebidae: Arctiinae: Arctiini) from threatened mountain cloud forests in the Mesoamerican biodiversity hotspot

Single Night Surveys of Moth Communities Can Serve as Ultra-Rapid Biodiversity Assessments.

Biodiversity conservation decisions are typically based on limited data and resources. For this reason, there is great interest in surveying taxa that may allow for a rapid assessment of the biodiversity at a site. Numerous taxa have been proposed and utilized for rapid assessments that allow for such a survey in a matter of weeks or less. Herein, we test the idea that nocturnal moths have many of the characteristics that make them ideal for such surveys, such as relative ease of identification, strong ecological association with specific plant species and habitats, high alpha diversity, extended seasonal activity, and ease of trapping. We demonstrate that even in a few hours of sampling during single night surveys, moth communities are predictive of regional forest types at sampling sites in New Jersey. We sampled moths in five different forest habitats in New Jersey, USA: Pine Barrens, Upland Deciduous Forest, Palustrine Deciduous Forest, Maritime Forest, and Ruderal/Disturbed Forests, at four sites per forest type. Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) analyses revealed that moth communities differ significantly across these four forest types (p < 0.01). We used Analysis of Similarity (ANOSIM) R tests to quantify the degree of differentiation among moth communities, and found that Tortricidae (R = 0.657) and Geometridae (R = 0.637) predict forest communities nearly as well as the total moth diversity (R = 0.668). Uncommon species (R = 0.665) were better predictors than common species (R = 0.500). Host plant generalists (R = 0.654) were better predictors than specialists (0.538), which was a surprising find.

Diversity but Not Overall Abundance of Moths and Butterflies (Insecta: Lepidoptera) Decreases around Two Arctic Polluters.

Alarming reports on the rapid decline of insects during the past decades call for the exploration of potential drivers of this process. Here, we test the hypothesis that the overall abundance and diversity of moths and butterflies (Lepidoptera) decrease under the impact of industrial pollution in the fragile arctic environment. For this purpose, experienced collectors netted adult Lepidoptera at five tundra sites located 0.5 to 45.3 km from the ore-roasting plant in Zapolyarnyy and at five forest sites located 1.4 to 37.8 km from the copper-nickel smelter at Nikel, in the Murmansk region of Russia. The analysis of the 100 samples collected from 2003 to 2008 and containing 2312 individuals of 122 species revealed that the diversity of Lepidoptera declined significantly near both of these polluters due to both decreases in species richness and changes in the abundance of individual species, whereas the overall abundance of moths and butterflies was independent of the pollution load. These patterns did not differ between Nikel and Zapolyarnyy, and they were consistent with patterns previously found near the copper-nickel smelter at Monchegorsk. The abundances of Lepidoptera species showed variable changes along pollution gradients, from significantly negative to significantly positive, but individual species showed similar density changes around these three polluters. Disproportional increases in the abundance of a few pollution-tolerant species change the community structure and explain why the overall abundance of moths and butterflies does not decline even in localities experiencing extreme loads of sulphur dioxide and heavy metals.

Spatial and temporal changes in moth assemblages along an altitudinal gradient, Jeju-do island

Montane species on islands attract attention due to their small and isolated populations and limited dispersal potential, making them vulnerable to extinction. We investigated the diversity pattern of moth assemblages over the 12-years-period (2009–2020) at 11 study plots on an island mountain (Mount Hallasan, Jeju-do Island, South Korea) to assess the changes in the moth assemblages in terms of species composition, richness, and abundances. We expected to find a decline in the number of species at these sites, given the reported decline in similar taxa in other temperate regions, such as Europe and North America. In contrast, we found that the numbers of species and individuals of moth populations on the island mountain have not significantly changed, except at the high-elevation sites, where the number of species has increased. Our results also show that the numbers of species and individuals are closely related to energy availability, actual evapotranspiration. Moreover, we found that the species composition during the study period has not been greatly changed, except at the lowermost and uppermost elevations. The mechanism driving this high dissimilarity of moth assemblages differed: the low-elevation site experienced high temporal turnover, and the high elevation sites also experienced high temporal turnover and nestedness resulting from active species replacement due to a recent forest fire and vegetation changes and the geographic and ecological constraints of the high elevations. To date, the moth species diversity of the temperate forests of the island mountain is not showing a drastic change. However, we observed that the moth assemblages had changed the number of species and individuals at low and high elevations. Given the biological and ecological limitations of moths (ectothermic organisms with limited habitat range) and considering the results of our study, we infer that climate change has impacted the diversity and species composition of moths on the island mountain.

Diversity and Habitat Preferences of Moths (Insecta: Lepidoptera) in Indikadamukalana, a Lowland Wet Zone Forest in Sri Lanka

The moths (Insecta, Lepidoptera) of Sri Lanka have not been well studied and no comprehensive scientific study on their diversity has been carried out over the past 100 years. Thus, establishing species richness and diversity of moths in different habitats of the island is important. The present study was carried out to investigate moth species diversity and habitat factors which can affect moths in Indikadamukalana Forest Reserve situated in the wet zone of Sri Lanka. Moth diversity of the forest was investigated for a period of approximately seven months in 2018, where two habitat types as forest edge and within forest were studied. Transect line count method was used to sample diurnal moths and light traps were used to study nocturnal moths. Aerial nets and fruit-baited traps were used to improve the sampling efficiency. Weather parameters of the two habitat types were estimated using a potable weather station. A total of 138 moth species of 19 families were recorded, with forest edge habitat recording 18 families (91 species) and within the forest habitat recording 15 families (47 species). Crambidae and Erebidae were the most prominent families of moths found in both habitats of the forest. Gelechiidae was recorded only from within the forest habitat while Sphingidae, Hepialidae, Tortricidae and Bombycidae were recorded only from the forest edge habitat. Weather parameters between the two habitats did not depict a significant difference. Maintenance of Sri Lanka’s biodiversity hotspot status lies within the wet zone of the country. Thus, long term studies of moth communities of the wet zone are of vital importance

Preliminary studies of macro-moths diversity (Lepidoptera) in chirpine forests of Himachal Pradesh

The present biodiversity study was conducted in Himachal Pradesh, India to find the status of moth diversity in Chirpine forests. During the study, about 526 specimens of moths were collected with the help of light trap from different selected sites of Chirpine forests. All the specimens were sorted into 80 species of moths belonging to 71 genera and 11 families. Out of which 06 species from family Crambidae, 03 from family Drepanidae, 29 from family Erebidae, 01 species from family Euteliidae, 14 from Geometridae, 02 species from family Lasciocampidae, 18 species from family Noctuidae, 02 species from family Nolidae, 01 species of family Notodontidae, 03 species from family Sphingidae and 01 species from family Uraniidae were recorded. This is the first record of moth diversity study in the Chirpine forest of Himachal Pradesh.

Keanekaragaman Ngengat Superfamily Bombicoidea: Eksplorasi Potensi Ulat Sutera di Dataran Rendah Kabupaten Jayapura

Jayapura Regency is one of the regions that considerable potential for economic growth from non-timber forest products. In the development of non-timber forest products in the form of products produced by insects, silk yarn is one of the commodity that has a high demand. The domestic demand for silk yarn is 900 tons/year, while only 19.05 tons/year were produced in 2012. Jayapura Regency has a great potential to supply the shortage of cocoon for the domestic market and the wide open international market. Related to this challenge, this study conducted basic research on the diversity of moths from the Bombicoidea superfamily in the natural forest of Kampung Soaib, Jayapura Regency. Sampling using light traps, four species of moths from the Saturnidae family were obtained, Syntherata apicalis, Opodiphtera intermedia, Opodiphtera papuana, and Coscinocera hercules. The cocoon of Coscinocera hercules is very potential as a silk thread producer because it is large and consists of two layers with brown color and has fiber characteristics similar to the cocoon of Attacus atlas which has been developed as a wild silk producer. These results indicate that the lowland forests of Jayapura Regency as a habitat for wild silkworm species has potential to be developed as non-timber forest products.Key words: Superfamily Bombicoidea; silkworm; cocoon; Jayapura regency

A CHECKLIST ON THE MOTH DIVERSITY (LEPIDOPTERA: HETEROCERA) AT MADRAS CHRISTIAN COLLEGE CAMPUS, TAMBARAM EAST, CHENNAI

Moths are diverse group of insects belonging to the order Lepidoptera and suborder Heterocera.
 They are regarded as one of the indicators of a healthy environment. This study deals with the first checklist of moth species in Madras Christian College campus, Tambaram. The study was carried out from December 2018 to September 2019. In total, 32 species of moths were identified from 29 genera falling under 9 families. The Moths identified belonged to the families of Erebidae, Noctuidae, Crambidae, Sphingidae, Eupterotidae, Uraniidae, Saturniidae, Geometridae and Tineidae of which, family Erebidae was found to be the superior family. The results of this preliminary study sheds light on the unknown biodiversity of moth, which needs to be strengthened through comprehensive future surveys. The objective of this study is to document moth diversity in Madras Christian College, Tambaram.

Recovery of moth and butterfly (Lepidoptera) communities in a polluted region following emission decline.

Environmental pollution is one of the major drivers of the present-day decline in global biodiversity. However, the links between the effects of industrial pollution on insect communities and the underlying species-specific responses remain poorly understood. We explored the spatial pattern in insect communities by analysing 581 samples of moths and butterflies (containing 25,628 individuals of 345 species) collected along a strong pollution gradient in subarctic Russia, and we recorded temporal changes in these communities during the pollution decline that occurred from 1992 to 2006. In the 1990s, the diversity of the Lepidoptera community was positively correlated with the distance from the copper-nickel smelter at Monchegorsk. The overall abundance of Lepidoptera did not change along the pollution gradient, although the abundance of many species decreased with increasing pollution. The responses of each individual species to pollution were associated with its life history traits. The abundances of monophagous species that fed inside live plant tissues and hibernated as imagoes or pupae were not affected by pollution, whereas the abundances of oligophagous and polyphagous species that fed externally on plants and hibernated as larvae generally declined near the smelter. Substantial decreases in aerial emissions from the smelter between 1992 and 2006 resulted in an increase in the diversity of moths and butterflies in severely polluted habitats, whereas their overall abundance did not change. This recovery of the Lepidoptera community occurred due to the reappearance of rare species that had been previously extirpated by pollution and was observed despite the lack of any signs of recovery of the vegetation in the heavily polluted sites. We conclude that the recovery trajectories of insect communities following emission control can be predicted from studies of their changes along spatial pollution gradients by using space-for-time substitution.

A preliminary checklist of moths (Lepidoptera: Heterocera) of Jahangirnagar university campus, Savar, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Lepidopterans (moths and butterflies) are one of the most suitable, best known groups of insects to study diversity, abundance and species richness as they constitute a major share of living organisms on this earth. The present survey was conducted from February 2022 to June 2022 to explore the diversity of moth species in Jahangirnagar University campus, Savar, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Moths were collected using an 18W UV light trap powered by a 900 Watt generator. A total of 78 moth species under 50 genera and 9 families were recorded during the sampling period covering 60 trapping hours. The recorded moth families were Noctuidae, Erebidae, Pyralidae, Crambidae, Geometridae, Psychidae, Nolidae, Totrichidae and Cossidae. The highest number of species were recorded from the family Erebidae followed by Crambidae, Noctuidae and Geometridae. Only two species were identified from each of the family Pyralidae, Psychidae, Nolidae and Totrichidae, and a single genus from Cossidae. This is the first time report on moth fauna of Jahangirnagar University campus and amongst the reported 78 species, 61 species are new for the moth inventory of Bangladesh. Results of this study would be helpful to prepare a baseline data for the moth diversity of Jahangirnagar University campus.

Moth Diversity Increases along a Continent-Wide Gradient of Environmental Productivity in South African Savannahs.

Simple SummaryEnvironmental productivity is considered among the key factors responsible for the uneven distribution of biodiversity on the globe, despite the lack of comprehensive studies for many groups of organisms and regions. We partly filled this gap by this study of moth diversity along the unique continent-wide gradient of environmental productivity across southern African savannahs. We revealed a significantly positive relationship of the moth species richness and environmental productivity, which we did not observe for moth abundance. We hypothesize the effects of water availability, habitat complexity, and plant diversity drive the described relationships.Environmental productivity, i.e., the amount of biomass produced by primary producers, belongs among the key factors for the biodiversity patterns. Although the relationship of diversity to environmental productivity differs among studied taxa, detailed data are largely missing for most groups, including insects. Here, we present a study of moth diversity patterns at local and regional scales along a continent-wide gradient of environmental productivity in southern African savannah ecosystems. We sampled diversity of moths (Lepidoptera: Heterocera) at 120 local plots along a gradient of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) from the Namib Desert to woodland savannahs along the Zambezi River. By standardized light trapping, we collected 12,372 specimens belonging to 487 moth species. The relationship between species richness for most analyzed moth groups and environmental productivity was significantly positively linear at the local and regional scales. The absence of a significant relationship of most moth groups’ abundance to environmental productivity did not support the role of the number of individuals in the diversity–productivity relationship for south African moths. We hypothesize the effects of water availability, habitat complexity, and plant diversity drive the observed moth diversity patterns.

Mediterranean moth diversity is sensitive to increasing temperatures and drought under climate change

Climate change affects ecosystems worldwide and is threatening biodiversity. Insects, as ectotherm organisms, are strongly dependent on the thermal environment. Yet, little is known about the effects of summer heat and drought on insect diversity. In the Mediterranean climate zone, a region strongly affected by climate change, hot summers might have severe effects on insect communities. Especially the larval stage might be sensitive to thermal variation, as larvae—compared to other life stages—cannot avoid hot temperatures and drought by dormancy. Here we ask, whether inter-annual fluctuations in Mediterranean moth diversity can be explained by temperature (TLarv) and precipitation during larval development (HLarv). To address our question, we analyzed moth communities of a Mediterranean coastal forest during the last 20 years. For species with summer-developing larvae, species richness was significantly negatively correlated with TLarv, while the community composition was affected by both, TLarv and HLarv. Therefore, summer-developing larvae seem particularly sensitive to climate change, as hot summers might exceed the larval temperature optima and drought reduces food plant quality. Increasing frequency and severity of temperature and drought extremes due to climate change, therefore, might amplify insect decline in the future.

Moths Diversity in Barsuan Range, Bonai Forest Division, Odisha, India and their Ecological Importance

Moths are a group of insects belonging to Class Insecta and Order Lepidoptera. Butterflies are also coming under the Order Lepidoptera and moths can be mistaken as butterflies. Moths and their caterpillars are important food for many species of amphibians, small mammals (such as bats) and many birds. They pollinate flowers while feeding on their nectar, and therefore help in seed production. This includes wild plants, garden plants and food crops. Keeping the importance of moth, an attempt has been made to document the moth diversity of Barsuan Range, Bonai Forest Division, Odisha during 2021-2022. The results revealed that about 31 species of moths were observed. The ecological importance of the available moths is discussed in the present study. The paper highlights the importance of insects in balancing the ecology of Barsuan range, Bonai Forest Division, Odisha, India.

Moth community responses to woodland creation: The influence of woodland age, patch characteristics and landscape attributes

AbstractAimLarge‐scale habitat creation is crucial to mitigate the current ecological crisis, but scientific evidence on its effects on biodiversity is scarce. Here, we assess how assemblages of a biodiverse group (moths) develop over time in habitat creation sites. We use temperate woodlands as a case study, and compare species assemblages in restored and mature habitat patches. We also identify local‐ and landscape‐level attributes associated with high species richness and abundance.LocationCentral Scotland, United Kingdom.MethodsWe surveyed moths in a chronosequence of 79 temperate woodland patches encompassing woodland creation sites (20–160 years old) and mature “ancient” woodlands (250+ years old). We used structural equation models, generalized linear models and ordination techniques to quantify moth community responses to woodland creation, and degree of similarity to moth assemblages in ancient woodlands.ResultsWoodland creation sites harboured large numbers of moth species (212), were dominated by woodland generalists and had high species turnover. Moth abundance and diversity increased with woodland connectivity. Macromoths were more abundant and diverse in younger woodlands; micromoth specialists occurred more frequently in older woodland creation sites. Ancient woodlands had similar moth abundance/richness than woodland creation sites (except for fewer macromoth woodland specialist species), but their species composition was somewhat different. Patterns of beta diversity (low nestedness) indicated that moth species in woodland creation sites are not simply subsets of species in ancient woodlands.Main conclusionsTo benefit moth communities, woodland creation sites should be structurally diverse and in close proximity to other woodlands. At the landscape scale, a mosaic of woodland patches of different ages is likely to increase moth beta (and consequently gamma) diversity. Ancient woodlands and woodland creation sites each host substantial proportions of “unique” species; individual woodland patches contain distinctive moth assemblages and should be protected and valued for their contribution to regional moth diversity.