Thanks to the construction of butterfly banks, Trumpington Meadows Nature Reserve in Cambridge is now a location for cutting-edge research into mitigating the effects of climate change on insects.
The research, part of the Banking on Butterflies project, is a collaboration between our Insect Ecology Group led by Prof Ed Turner, the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire and the University of Reading.
Prof Turner says, "We are really excited about the new butterfly banks being installed at Wildlife Trust BCN's Trumpington Meadows Reserve. Together with existing banks at our other sites in Bedfordshire and Wiltshire, this gives us an unprecedented chance to investigate how to manage reserves to make them more resilient to climate change. We are looking forward to running undergraduate student projects at Trumpington Meadows to find out more about the effects of the banks."
The Group’s research has shown that high temperatures can have extremely negative impacts on insects, but that varied topography and vegetation have the potential to provide microclimate refuges for affected species. The ‘E’ shaped banks do just this within a small area. The banks add to the repertoire of methods available to conservation practitioners to protect insects.
Dr Andrew Bladon adds "The impacts of climate change on our wildlife are already being felt, and extreme weather events like heatwaves are difficult for insects to survive.
“We hope that these banks will provide cooler, more sheltered locations where butterflies, beetles and other invertebrates can hide during high temperatures. Importantly, the experimental design of the banks and our monitoring will allow us test whether this happens, which is crucial for developing effective, evidence-based conservation actions.”
The project is supported by the Evolution Education Trust, the People’s Postcode Lottery Nature-based Solutions Fund, and the Cambridge Conservation Initiative Collaborative Fund.
Find out more:
Banking on Butterflies project | Wildlife Trust for Beds Cambs & Northants
Hayes MP, Ashe-Jepson E, Hitchcock GE, Clark R, Hellon J, Knock RI, Bladon AJ & Turner EC (2024). Heatwave predicts shady future for insects. Journal of Insect Conservation 28 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-024-00556-5
Suggitt AJ, Wilson RJ, August TA, Fox R, Isaac NJB, Macgregor NA, Morecroft MD & Maclean IMD (2015) Microclimate affects landscape level persistence in the British Lepidoptera. Journal of Insect Conservation 19(2):237–253
Woods HA, Dillon ME & Pincebourde S (2015) The roles of microclimatic diversity and of behavior in mediating the responses of ectotherms to climate change. Journal of Thermal Biology 54:86–97
Interested in taking part?The Insect Ecology Group are currently advertising for postgraduate students to work on this project.
Images: (Top of page) Researchers Rosa Pollard Smith and Prof Ed Turner monitoring insects at one of the sets of banks at the Wildlife Trust BCN’s Pegsdon Hills reserve. Photo by Ben Andrews
(Bottom of page) Dr Andrew Bladon at the newly constructed bank in at BCN Wildlife Trust’s Trumpington Meadows Reserve. Photo by Nik Shelton.