Everybody loves butterflies, and they are easy to spot and identify, so we have mountains of citizen science data on their distribution and population trends. Which is good and useful, and a good indicator of ecosystem health or otherwise. The only trouble is that we don't know nearly enough about most other insect species. Thus, as we see butterflies declining, as we do now according to several recent studies, we should fear that the less popular and less well observed insects may also be in difficulties, and that may threaten the survival of many other species and entire ecosystems.
While some may consider butterflies as merely decorative, their demise should really worry us more than it does. More about all this in my latest feature which is out now:
Butterfly warnings
Current Biology Volume 35, Issue 9, 5 May 2025, Pages R315-R317
Restricted access to full text and PDF download
(contact me if you would like a PDF)
See also my Mastodon thread where I highlighted all CB features of 2025.
The thread for 2024 is here .
A pair of dorcas copper butterflies (Lycaena dorcas), one of the North American species for which population trends were established in a recent study. (Photo: © David Pavlik, Michigan State University.)
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