The human factor: Insect population down by 45% in 35 years

Scientists fear that the drop in insects could drastically harm the planet due to the vital role they play.

15:14 25 July 2014

A report has been released that confirms that the world’s population of creepy crawlies has fallen by a huge 45% in 35 years. The report warned that this could harm the planet because of the vital role they play while the reason cited for their decline is the growing human population, which increased by up to 50%.

The study, which was published in the journal Science, revealed slugs, spiders, worms, and other invertebrates suffer from loss of their habitats and climate change.

In the UK, the number of beetles, butterflies, bees and wasps has fallen by up to 60 per cent.

Experts say that insects play an important role in pollinating crops, pest control, decomposition, and ensuring soil remains packed with nutrients as well as water filtration. They warned that the drop in the number of insects can affect crop production that can amount to 10per cent of the world’s food supply.

Dr Ben Collen, from University College London's Biosciences Department, said: 'We were shocked to find similar losses in invertebrates as with larger animals, as we previously thought invertebrates to be more resilient.

‘While we don't fully understand what the long-term impact of these declining numbers will be, we are currently in the potentially dangerous position of losing integral parts of ecosystems without knowing what roles they play within it.

'Prevention of further declines will require us to better understand what species are winning and losing in the fight for survival and from studying the winners, apply what we learn to improve conservation projects.

'We also need to develop predictive tools for modelling the impact of changes to the ecosystem so we can prioritise conservation efforts, working with governments globally to create supportive policy to reverse the worrying trends we are seeing.'