Insect decline of 37% over 50 years shows support for farmers is crucial to biodiversity recovery - Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust
Starting in 1970, the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust’s (GWCT) ongoing Sussex Study is the world’s longest running scientific study on the cereal ecosystem, providing a robust indication of the national picture. The data collected up until 2019 has shown that insect abundance declined by 37%.
It is unique in that it samples invertebrates on the same area of farmland, at the same time of year, using the same methods. It also maps changes in farming practices, such as cropping, field size, and pesticide use, which, together with climate change, are major drivers of variations in invertebrate abundance.
As well as identifying the problem, the GWCT has used the results of the Sussex Study and other research projects to find practical solutions to conservation challenges. A new Guide to Insect-Rich Farmland Habitats published by the Trust details what measures farmers can take to increase invertebrate numbers, improving biodiversity while still remaining as productive as before.
During the period 1970-2019 a total of 4,757 samples containing 2.98million invertebrates were collected from cereal fields across the study area. A newly published scientific paper, analysing the results of sampling in this 50-year period, showed a drop in overall abundance of 37% with varying levels of decline in different invertebrate groups.
Beneficial predators including ground beetles (-80%) and ladybirds (-78%) fell significantly and aphids, which are food for a wide range of invertebrates, dropped by 90%. There was no detectable change in the number of pollinators, but many groups, such as bees, are not normally associated with cereal fields.
Posted On: 23/07/2024
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