Note that the neighboring Finland is known to harbor over 23,000 insect species, while in Karelia, as of 2024, only 12,037 species have been reliably confirmed. This indirectly suggests that only about half of the potential insect fauna has been documented in Karelia to date.
The article by Karelian entomologists covers all insect orders except for Diptera (flies) and Hymenoptera (wasps, bees, and ants), which account for more than half of all insect species in Karelia and will be addressed in further publications.
The newly discovered species belong to such orders as Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies), Psocoptera (booklice), Neuroptera (lacewings), Mecoptera (scorpionflies), Hemiptera (true bugs), Coleoptera (beetles), and Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths). The material was collected during expeditions carried out in 2002 to 2023, and additionally data from the iNaturalist platform were analyzed.
To wit, a species of the damselfly family Coenagrionidae was recorded for the first time in southern Karelia. Previously, these insects had only been documented in southern Finland and southerner regions of Russia. Also, a first Karelian record of a lacebug species Tingis ampliata was made. In the mid-20th century, this species’ northern distribution limit was Moscow and Kirov Regions, and in 2013 it was encountered in southern Komi.
It’s for the first time in Karelia that a lacebug species Tingis ampliata was discovered
Some of the discovered species, not recognized previously because of their morphological similarity with other taxa, were identified as belonging to the native fauna. The rest likely appeared as a result of range expansion, which to scientists attribute to climate change and human activities.
“Most insect species in Karelia do not cause much harm to the economy, although there is a risk of dangerous pest introductions from eastern and southerner regions. One of the main forest pests at present is the European spruce bark beetle, whose abundance outbreaks have been recorded in Karelia since the early 2000s”, - noted the authors of the study.
Special attention in the paper is given to the importance of data provided by citizen science, which implies research involving a wide range of amateur volunteers. In particular, users can share their nature-watching observations – photos, locations, etc. A worldwide resource for such sharing is the iNaturalist portal. This platform, as well as other e-resources, such as GBIF, help broaden our knowledge of biological diversity even with a limited number of qualified specialists.
For instance, the iNaturalist service made it possible to validate the presence of several members of the Coleopteran order in Karelia – beetles such as Ebaeus lapplandicus, Anthocomus rufus and Glischrochilus grandis.
The authors stress the importance of monitoring the ongoing changes and of further involvement of citizens in the study and conservation of Karelian biodiversity.
As a reminder, last year entomologists made a first Karelian record of blood-sucking mosquitoes – Anopheles claviger, capable of transmitting malaria.
Karelian scientists also explore the insect fauna outside of the republic. They contributed to the discovery of new species of fungus gnats and ichneumonids in Siberia, the Far East, South Korea, Mexico, South Africa, and other regions.
