AI Insight
The Australian National Insect Collection at CSIRO houses an extensive archive of 2,000 drawers containing butterfly specimens, with some dating back over 100 years. This historical collection provides researchers with a unique opportunity to study long-term changes in butterfly populations and characteristics. The specimens serve as a baseline for understanding how climate change has affected butterfly species over time.
Why it matters
Historical insect collections allow scientists to track physical and distributional changes in species across decades, providing crucial evidence of climate change impacts on biodiversity. These preserved specimens can reveal shifts in butterfly ranges, body sizes, and population dynamics that would otherwise be impossible to document.
Understand the Science
The Australian National Insect Collection at CSIRO holds 2,000 drawers of butterfly specimens, including some that were collected more than a century ago.
Source: Butterfly effects of climate change