Insects in temperate urban parks face stronger selection pressure from the cold than the heat.

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_D45B80FBF68D
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Insects in temperate urban parks face stronger selection pressure from the cold than the heat.
Journal
Ecology and evolution
Author(s)
Bujan J., Bertelsmeier C., Ješovnik A.
ISSN
2045-7758 (Print)
ISSN-L
2045-7758
Publication state
Published
Issued date
08/2024
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
14
Number
8
Pages
e11335
Language
english
Notes
Publication types: Journal Article
Publication Status: epublish
Abstract
Urban areas experience higher temperatures compared to rural areas and as such, are increasingly considered places of acclimatization and adaptation to warming. Small ectotherms, such as insects, whose body temperature rises with habitat temperature, are directly affected by temperature changes. Thus, warming could have a profound effect on insect behavior and physiology. To test if the urban heat island effect drives higher thermal tolerance and activity changes, we used globally distributed and abundant insects-ants. We measured the heat and cold tolerance of 14 ant species distributed across urban and peri-urban areas. As thermal traits are often correlated with ant foraging, we measured foraging activity during three consecutive years across eight sites. Contrary to our prediction, ants exposed to the urban heat island effect did not have a higher heat tolerance than peri-urban ants. Instead, cold tolerance varied across habitats, with ants from the cooler, peri-urban habitats being able to tolerate lower temperatures. We recorded the same pattern of invariant heat and higher cold tolerance for ants in the canopy, compared to ground nesting ants. Ant activity was almost 10 times higher in urban sites and best predicted by cold, not heat tolerance. These unexpected results suggest that we need to rethink predictions about urban heat islands increasing insect heat tolerance in urban habitats, as cold tolerance might be a more plastic or adaptable trait, particularly in the temperate zone.
Keywords
CTmax, CTmin, ants, ecophysiology, insects, microclimates, peri‐urban, thermal tolerance, urban green spaces
Pubmed
Web of science
Create date
26/08/2024 10:07
Last modification date
27/08/2024 6:20
Usage data