What's crawling in my
meadow?
Discover biodiversity
with the insect calculator from BioDivKultur
Disclaimer:
The results of the Insect Calculator are only predictions. In the walk mode, the same data was used as in the expert mode and therefore all area types were calculated. Thus, the example is not only based on data of the specific type, but is an exemplary calculation as in professional mode, but with the unknown mowing parameters preset. The “lawn” is therefore not only based on lawn areas, but on all types of meadows with the settings that could be typical for a lawn: here an area mulched 10 times a year. The actual numbers may vary due to various factors. The data in the Insect Calculator is compiled from multiple data sets, leading to a robust, large sample size. However, this means the data is also very heterogeneous. For example, mowed areas encompass both mowed meadows and lawns, which can impact the predicted results. But also, not all data sets represent the same number of variables. This is why not all potential influential variables could be selected.
Land use
Weather
Ants and aphids
Other land use influences, such as fertilization or grazing (Chisté et al. 2016, Ecosph & Chisté et al. 2018, Oecol), can have an effect on the calculated area. Other area maintenance, such as the use of conditioners (Hecker et al. 2022, J Insect Conserv) or maintenance measures such as rolling and leveling (Berger et al. 2024, Ecol Appl) might also play a role. Due to missing data, these parameters could not be taken into account here. However, for example, variables such as mowing frequency can account for fertilisation.
In addition, there are other factors, such as climate and weather, that could not be taken into account. While it is clear that different weather influences insects (Müller et al. 2023, Nature), the Insect Calculator includes the date, which should account for seasonal variations.
Ants and aphids often occur in large groups, which must be taken into account when interpreting the data. Ants are colony-forming (Hölldobler and Wilson 1990, Harvard University Press), complicating their predictions if e.g. one ant nest was sampled. Destroyed ant nests by a mulcher could therefore cause more ant numbers, for example. The situation is similar to aphids, which often occur in large numbers (Blackman and Eastop, 2024, https://aphidsonworldsplants.info/). One reason for this is that they can reproduce asexually, i.e., they do not need males to reproduce. The predictions for ants and aphids should therefore be viewed with more caution. https://aphidsonworldsplants.info/). Ein Grund dafür ist, dass sie sich ungeschlechtlich vermehren können, d. h. sie benötigen keine Männchen zur Fortpflanzung. Die Vorhersagen für Ameisen und Blattläuse sollten daher mit größerer Vorsicht betrachtet werden.
Disclaimer:
The results of the Insect Calculator are only predictions. In the walk mode, the same data was used as in the expert mode and therefore all area types were calculated. Thus, the example is not only based on data of the specific type, but is an exemplary calculation as in professional mode, but with the unknown mowing parameters preset. The “lawn” is therefore not only based on lawn areas, but on all types of meadows with the settings that could be typical for a lawn: here an area mulched 10 times a year. The actual numbers may vary due to various factors. The data in the Insect Calculator is compiled from multiple data sets, leading to a robust, large sample size. However, this means the data is also very heterogeneous. For example, mowed areas encompass both mowed meadows and lawns, which can impact the predicted results. But also, not all data sets represent the same number of variables. This is why not all potential influential variables could be selected.
Land use
Other land use influences, such as fertilization or grazing (Chisté et al. 2016, Ecosph & Chisté et al. 2018, Oecol), can have an effect on the calculated area. Other area maintenance, such as the use of conditioners (Hecker et al. 2022, J Insect Conserv) or maintenance measures such as rolling and leveling (Berger et al. 2024, Ecol Appl) might also play a role. Due to missing data, these parameters could not be taken into account here. However, for example, variables such as mowing frequency can account for fertilisation
Weather
In addition, there are other factors, such as climate and weather, that could not be taken into account. While it is clear that different weather influences insects (Müller et al. 2023, Nature), the Insect Calculator includes the date, which should account for seasonal variations.
Ants and aphids
Ants and aphids often occur in large groups, which must be taken into account when interpreting the data. Ants are colony-forming (Hölldobler and Wilson 1990, Harvard University Press), complicating their predictions if e.g. one ant nest was sampled. Destroyed ant nests by a mulcher could therefore cause more ant numbers, for example. The situation is similar to aphids, which often occur in large numbers (Blackman and Eastop, 2024, https://aphidsonworldsplants.info/). One reason for this is that they can reproduce asexually, i.e., they do not need males to reproduce. The predictions for ants and aphids should therefore be viewed with more caution.
Why an insect calculator?
How many insects live in this meadow? And how are meadow inhabitants affected by mowing? Everyone can find out the answers to these questions for themselves here.
How does the insect calculator work?
What data is the insect calculator based on? And how are the meadow dwellers calculated?
The article on the Insect Calculator has been published!
If you’d like to find out more about the results and the development of the calculator, and read how the insect calculator is described in a scientific publication, you can find out more here:
About the project
About BioDivKultur
The BioDivKultur project is funded as part of the FEdA “BMBF research initiative for the preservation of biodiversity”. You can read about who we are, what we do and what drives us here.
Wiesion 2024
An exhibition of the bioversum Jagdschloss Kranichstein. Everything about insects, spiders, mowers and meadows.
Nature Points Darmstadt 2024
In spring 2024, different meadows can be experienced throughout Darmstadt!
