Microclimate-based macrophysiology: implications for insects in a warming world

Duffy, Grant A.; Coetzee, Bernard W. T.; Janion‐Scheepers, Charlene; Chown, Steven Loudon

doi:10.1016/j.cois.2015.09.013

Cited by 54 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…Positive effects of temperature fluctuations are often documented within the permissible range of species but, outside this, negative effects on fitness begin to accumulate (Colinet et al, 2015;Bozinovic et al, 2016;Saxon et al, 2018). Mimicking temperature fluctuations in the laboratory is also complicated because species are unable to buffer extreme temperatures by seeking out microclimates (Duffy et al, 2015;Buckley & Huey, 2016), meaning that the accumulation of temperature effects is likely to be larger in laboratory experiments than that experienced in wild populations. Laboratory environments can never truly mimic the complex selection patterns that organisms will experience in the field (Kristensen et al, 2008;Kristensen et al, 2015;Zhu et al, 2015;O'Brien et al, 2017).…”

Section: Improving Climate Change Predictorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Terrestrial insects and climate change: adaptive responses in key traits

2019

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Understanding and predicting how adaptation will contribute to species' resilience to climate change will be paramount to successfully managing biodiversity for conservation, agriculture, and human health‐related purposes. Making predictions that capture how species will respond to climate change requires an understanding of how key traits and environmental drivers interact to shape fitness in a changing world. Current trait‐based models suggest that low‐ to mid‐latitude populations will be most at risk, although these models focus on upper thermal limits, which may not be the most important trait driving species' distributions and fitness under climate change. In this review, we discuss how different traits (stress, fitness and phenology) might contribute and interact to shape insect responses to climate change. We examine the potential for adaptive genetic and plastic responses in these key traits and show that, although there is evidence of range shifts and trait changes, explicit consideration of what underpins these changes, be that genetic or plastic responses, is largely missing. Despite little empirical evidence for adaptive shifts, incorporating adaptation into models of climate change resilience is essential for predicting how species will respond under climate change. We are making some headway, although more data are needed, especially from taxonomic groups outside of Drosophila, and across diverse geographical regions. Climate change responses are likely to be complex, and such complexity will be difficult to capture in laboratory experiments. Moving towards well designed field experiments would allow us to not only capture this complexity, but also study more diverse species.

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Section: Improving Climate Change Predictorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Terrestrial insects and climate change: adaptive responses in key traits

2019

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“…resting metabolic rates) and less overall thermal tolerance than temperate species (Sunday et al ., ). Thus, insects are highly dependent on physiological mechanisms of heat tolerance and thermoregulation, on dispersal behaviour to find cooler sites, and on the presence of refuges with appropriate microclimates to regulate their body temperature (Sunday et al ., ; Duffy et al ., ; Pincebourde & Suppo, ). Habitat loss adds pressure by reducing the availability of natural refuges for many species, leaving them at the mercy of their physiological machinery and behavioural responses to survive heat (Denlinger & Yocum, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Insect responses to heat: physiological mechanisms, evolution and ecological implications in a warming world

et al. 2020

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Surviving changing climate conditions is particularly difficult for organisms such as insects that depend on environmental temperature to regulate their physiological functions. Insects are extremely threatened by global warming, since many do not have enough physiological tolerance even to survive continuous exposure to the current maximum temperatures experienced in their habitats. Here, we review literature on the physiological mechanisms that regulate responses to heat and provide heat tolerance in insects: (i) neuronal mechanisms to detect and respond to heat; (ii) metabolic responses to heat; (iii) thermoregulation; (iv) stress responses to tolerate heat; and (v) hormones that coordinate developmental and behavioural responses at warm temperatures. Our review shows that, apart from the stress response mediated by heat shock proteins, the physiological mechanisms of heat tolerance in insects remain poorly studied. Based on life-history theory, we discuss the costs of heat tolerance and the potential evolutionary mechanisms driving insect adaptations to high temperatures. Some insects may deal with ongoing global warming by the joint action of phenotypic plasticity and genetic adaptation. Plastic responses are limited and may not be by themselves enough to withstand ongoing warming trends. Although the evidence is still scarce and deserves further research in different insect taxa, genetic adaptation to high temperatures may result from rapid evolution. Finally, we emphasize the importance of incorporating physiological information for modelling species distributions and ecological interactions under global warming scenarios. This review identifies several open questions to improve our understanding of how insects respond physiologically to heat and the evolutionary and ecological consequences of those responses. Further lines of research are suggested at the species, order and class levels, with experimental and analytical approaches such as artificial selection, quantitative genetics and comparative analyses.

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“…The tree cover on mounds also creates cooler microclimates within the warmer landscape that can facilitate the persistence of heat sensitive organisms (Duffy et al. , Joseph et al. ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These mound properties result in a distinct suite of trees growing on-mound relative to off-mound sites (Traor e et al 2008). The tree cover on mounds also creates cooler microclimates within the warmer landscape that can facilitate the persistence of heat sensitive organisms (Duffy et al 2015, Joseph et al 2016.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wood decomposition is more rapid on than off termite mounds in an African savanna

2019

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Decomposition is important for nutrient cycling and the dynamics of soil organic matter. The factors that influence local decomposition rates in savannas dominated by Macrotermes mounds remain uncertain. Here, we experimentally assessed the effects of macro-and micro-detritivores, active and inactive mounds, and vegetation cover on wood decomposition rates for eight common woody plant species in Lake Mburo National Park, in Uganda. Five pairs of Macrotermes mounds, one active and one inactive per pair, were selected. Each mound provided two sample locations, one, the most shaded (with canopy cover), and one, the most open (without canopy cover) edge of mound. In addition, for each mound pair, one additional sample location was located off-mound, in an open level area between the mounds. After one, three, and 12 months, protected (wrapped in 1-mm mesh fiber-glass excluding macrodetritivores) and unprotected wood samples from each location were retrieved, brushed clean, oven-dried, and weighed. After 12 months, mean percentage mass loss was four times higher for unprotected than protected wood samples across all species located on mound sites (when decomposition in shaded and open microhabitats was combined). Mean percentage mass loss across all species combined was 1.2 times higher on active than inactive mounds. Across all mounds, decomposition was on average 1.1 times more rapid in the shaded than open mound parts. These differences were more pronounced on inactive mounds (1.3 times more rapid in the shaded than open parts). Percentage mass loss was markedly lower off-mound (12.6 AE 0.8%) than on active (25.9 AE 1.5%) or inactive mounds (19.7 AE 1.2%). Proportional mass loss for unprotected wood decreased with increasing wood density, but proportional mass loss of protected wood samples was not detectably influenced by wood density. Our study highlights the strong and locally contingent influence of termite mounds, termite activity, vegetation, and their interactions on wood decomposition rates within a savanna landscape. Furthermore, variation in per-species wood decomposition rates, including the negative correlation with wood density, depends on accessibility to macrodetritivores.

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Microclimate-based macrophysiology: implications for insects in a warming world

Cited by 54 publications

References 49 publications

Terrestrial insects and climate change: adaptive responses in key traits

Terrestrial insects and climate change: adaptive responses in key traits

Insect responses to heat: physiological mechanisms, evolution and ecological implications in a warming world

Wood decomposition is more rapid on than off termite mounds in an African savanna

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