Weather variation affects the dispersal of grasshoppers beyond their elevational ranges

Abstract

Understanding how abiotic conditions influence dispersal patterns of organisms is important for understanding the degree to which species can track and persist in the face of changing climate. The goal of this study was to understand how weather conditions influence the dispersal pattern of multiple nonmigratory grasshopper species from lower elevation grassland habitats in which they complete their life‐cycles to higher elevations that extend beyond their range limits. Using over a decade of weekly spring to late‐summer field survey data along an elevational gradient, we explored how abundance and richness of dispersing grasshoppers were influenced by temperature, precipitation, and wind speed and direction. We also examined how changes in population sizes at lower elevations might influence these patterns. We observed that the abundance of dispersing grasshoppers along the gradient declined 4‐fold from the foothills to the subalpine and increased with warmer conditions and when wind flow patterns were mild or in the downslope direction. Thirty‐eight unique grasshopper species from lowland sites were detected as dispersers across the survey years, and warmer years and weak upslope wind conditions also increased the richness of these grasshoppers. The pattern of grasshoppers along the gradient was not sex biased. The positive effect of temperature on dispersal rates was likely explained by an increase in dispersal propensity rather than by an increase in the density of grasshoppers at low elevation sites. The results of this study support the hypothesis that the dispersal patterns of organisms are influenced by changing climatic conditions themselves and as such, that this context‐dependent dispersal response should be considered when modeling and forecasting the ability of species to respond to climate change.

Micro‐ and macroclimate interactively shape diversity, niches and traits of Orthoptera communities along elevational gradients

“…Since high temperatures facilitate insect flight (Prinster et al, 2020), we expected a wing length reduction with elevation and microclimate. Indeed, long-winged species occurred more often in low elevations, corroborating findings of Tiede et al (2018) and Laiolo et al (2023), but not at sites with warmer microclimate.…”

Analysis of Spatiotemporal Variation in Habitat Suitability for Oedaleus decorus asiaticus Bei-Bienko on the Mongolian Plateau Using Maxent and Multi-Source Remote Sensing Data

“…The distributions of grasshoppers cannot be characterized using satellite remote sensing images because of their small size [ 14 ]. Recent studies have shown that the growth and development of grasshoppers are closely related to their habitat [ 15 ], including meteorological, topographical, soil, and vegetation factors [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. These factors affect the distribution, outbreak probability, and migration behavior of grasshoppers [ 21 , 22 ].…”

Detecting Key Factors of Grasshopper Occurrence in Typical Steppe and Meadow Steppe by Integrating Machine Learning Model and Remote Sensing Data

“…Recently, several studies showed that grasshopper occurrence is affected by different environmental factors or geographical attributes [ 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 ]. For instance, studies focusing on single factors influencing grasshopper occurrence demonstrate that grasshopper occurrence has a high correlation with plants [ 13 ].…”

“…Moreover, the region-specific topography, mainly including altitude and slope, has clear effects on the distribution of grasshopper occurrence [ 13 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ]. Several studies on the relationship between the microclimate (mainly including temperature and precipitation) and the distribution of grasshopper occurrence [ 9 , 17 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ] exist. The temperature affects grasshopper occurrence by affecting the development, survival and reproduction of grasshoppers [ 31 ], due to the fact that warming accelerates the incubation of grasshopper eggs and reduces drought stress [ 32 ].…”