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A warming world harms insects' ability to


reproduce, which could have long-term
consequences, scientists warn.
UK researchers also found that insects in northern
latitudes were more vulnerable than their southerndwelling cousins.
The team added that many insects were unable to move
great distances while they are juveniles. Therefore, they
are at risk from a warming climate.
The findings have been published in the Journal of
Evolutionary Biology.
"You get an extreme heat weather event that [the insect]
cannot escape from because they are juveniles, so they
can't move as much," explained co-author Rhonda Snook
from the University of Sheffield, UK.
"They live through it because it does not kill them, but
then they have the subsequent problem of reproducing."
Lasting damage
Dr Snook said the insects in the team's experiments were
exposed to a temperature increase of 5.5C (9.9F) for 10
days, which was enough to cause permanent damage to
the insects' ability to reproduce.
She said the team was interested in studying the effect of
temperature rises in organisms that were unable to move
away from their immediate environment.
"Lots of insects in their juvenile stage can't move very far
because they are larvae or because they are small nymphs
- they are smaller and they do not have wings so they are
not as mobile so they're stuck where they are."
Dr Snook told BBC News that the team carried out the
experiments on fruit flies but she expected the results to
be replicated in many other insects.
"I think that this is going to be a very common effect, a
very common phenomenon across insects."
The team examined the effect of increased ambient
temperature rise on two populations of fruit flies: one
from Spain and another from Sweden.
"We showed that the one that evolved in a colder
temperature (Swedish fruit flies) was less resistant to
these extreme weather events than the southern (Spanish)
population. That wasn't known before.
Dr Snook explained that the Spanish flies had evolved
where the predominant selection pressure was likely to
have been heat.
"If your predominant selection pressure in the north is
cold then you're going to be selected to be able to
respond really well to that," she added.
"And the idea here is that you can't do both very well."
While global average temperatures are not projected to
increase by 5.0C or more, climate modellers have
suggested that extreme weather events, such as heatwaves and droughts, are set to become more frequent. In
these events, localised temperatures are set to meet the
conditions in which insects' ability to reproduce will be
harmed.
Dr Snook suggested that any change in insect populations
could result in changes in ecosystems, but to what extent
would require further research.

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Vocabulary
1. Juvenile (n.) A young person/ animals.
2. Subsequent (adj.) Coming after something.
3. Nymph (n.) An immature form of an insect
that does not change greatly as it grows.
4. Replicated (v.) To make an exact copy of
something.
5. Ambient (adj.) Relating to the immediate
surroundings of something.
6. Predominant (adj.) Having ascendancy,
power, authority, or influence over others.
7. Modellers (n.) A person who creates
models.
8. Localised (v.) To make local.
9. Ecosystem (n.) A biological community and
their physical environment.
10. Extent (n.) the amount to which
something is or is believed to be the case.

Summary
UK researchers found that warm
weather could harm insects ability to
reproduce. They said that many baby
insects that couldnt move affected by
warming climate.
"You get an extreme heat weather event
that [the insect] cannot escape from
because they are juveniles, so they can't
move as much," explained co-author
Rhonda Snook from the University of
Sheffield, UK.
They live through it because it does not
kill them, but then they have the
subsequent problem of reproducing.
The team realized that the insect that
live in cold weather was less resistant to
hot weather than the same species of
insects in hot weather.
Dr Snook said that the insects in hot
weather had to evolve to resist hot
weather, with this idea they cant evolve
to resist both hot and cold weather.
Climate modellers told that extreme
weather events are going to be more
frequent. In these events, the
temperatures are set to meet the
conditions where it harm insects ability
to reproduce.
Dr Snook added that any change in
insect populations could result in
changes in the food chain.

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