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Have you ever stopped to think just how important insect biodiversity is to human life? Our ecosystems rely on the hard work of insects for important functions, such as pollination, which helps to put food on our plates. However, biodiversity declines are threatening the future sustainability of insect populations. Join us as we explore what we know (and what we don't know) about insect biodiversity in the natural world - from exploring new ways to track insect population using weather radars, to why current farming practices are so bad for bees. We are buzzing to see you there.
(Where) have all the insects gone? 'Insectageddon' revisited
Dr. Christopher Hassall
(Associate Professor of Biology)
Insect biodiversity is declining in what can be considered an ‘Insectageddon’. Why is this happening? Where are the insects going? Here we demonstrate the use of weather radars to recognise and quantify different species of insects across the UK skies. This allows us to create a map of UK insect diversity and demonstrate how man-made changes to the landscape affect insect populations.
Step Aside Insecticides
Dr. Elizabeth Duncan
(Associate Professor of Zoology)
Insecticides are commonly used in UK farming to prevent insect-pests from damaging crops. However, these insecticides are also harmful to beneficial insects, such as bees. Here we explore what are these insecticides made of and why are they so harmful to bees?
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