Killing Ourselves Slowly-Insects Are Dying Off — Alarmingly Fast
We are ignoring the warnings. serious warnings.
Bees, butterflies, moths, dung beetles, and crickets are all declining
Butterflies and moths, known as the Lepidoptera order, are some of the hardest hit: 53 percent of Lepidoptera have seen declining population numbers. This is especially concerning as butterflies, which are very sensitive to changes in landscape and food sources, are often a bellwether of environmental health.
Some 50 percent of Orthoptera species (grasshoppers and crickets, another important source of food for an enormous array of animals) are also in decline. Forty percent of bee species are listed as vulnerable for extinction, and most dung beetle species (named for — you guessed it — what they like to eat) are vulnerable or endangered.