Effects of Climate Change on Insects: Physiological, Evolutionary, and Ecological Responses

Anthropogenic climate change is likely to be the largest environmental challenge of this century, posing an existential threat to humans as well as most plants and animals. Insects are the largest and most diverse group of organisms on Earth and are involved in nutrient cycling, pollination, seed dispersal, and control populations of other organisms, besides being a major food source for other taxa and vectors of many human diseases. Therefore, synthesizing insect physiological, evolutionary and ecological responses in a single book is relevant for a potentially wide audience interested in different aspects of insect responses to climate change. This book focuses not only on insects of economic or public health importance, but also on non-model organisms, which provide fundamental evidence on the threats posed to global insect populations. Insect responses to climate change are evaluated and organized at four main levels: individuals, populations, communities and ecosystems, providing the central structure of the book. This work will help to meet demand for knowledge from advanced students and researchers about a critical subject matter of growing importance. Effects of Climate Change on Insects is an advanced textbook that will appeal to upper level undergraduate and postgraduate entomology students as well as researchers and conservationists seeking to understand different aspects of insect responses to anthropogenic climate change.