Better red than dead: Plasticine moths are attacked less under HPS streetlights than LEDs
Anthropogenic light at night is growing exponentially while many insect populations are in decline. Many nocturnal insects provide numerous ecosystem services and are attracted to anthropogenic lights at night resulting in decreased fitness, greater mortality and population declines. During twilight...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2024-02-01
|
| Series: | Basic and Applied Ecology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179123000713 |
| _version_ | 1797353625098387456 |
|---|---|
| author | Brett Seymoure Tessa Parrish Kaley Egan Malcolm Furr Danny Irwin Cassie Brown Morgan Crump Jeremy White Kevin Crooks Lisa Angeloni |
| author_facet | Brett Seymoure Tessa Parrish Kaley Egan Malcolm Furr Danny Irwin Cassie Brown Morgan Crump Jeremy White Kevin Crooks Lisa Angeloni |
| author_sort | Brett Seymoure |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Anthropogenic light at night is growing exponentially while many insect populations are in decline. Many nocturnal insects provide numerous ecosystem services and are attracted to anthropogenic lights at night resulting in decreased fitness, greater mortality and population declines. During twilight and night, moths are depredated by bats and birds, both of which use vision, among other strategies, to detect and prey upon moths. The visual detection of moths by predators is dependent upon the light environment illuminating the moth's body. Effects of anthropogenic light at night can differ drastically with the color (spectral composition) and intensity of light. Currently, high pressure sodium lamps (HPS) and light emitting diodes (LEDs) are common municipal light sources, and these lights differ spectrally, thus altering the visual scene. Most LEDs are broadband (i.e., white) whereas HPS are long wavelength dominant (i.e., amber); both of these light types can alter color perception of prey. To test if moths are more likely to survive under HPS lighting than LEDs and non-lit poles, we used plasticine clay models. Visual model analyses reveal that HPS lamps rendered moths more cryptic against their background than LEDs or ambient urban lighting, albeit with small differences in contrast that may not be biologically relevant. These results indicate that HPS lighting is the most insect-friendly lighting when considering depredation on insects in comparison to LED. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T13:33:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c4148db5e84f4e1698f1626fe12a21cd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1439-1791 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T13:33:43Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Basic and Applied Ecology |
| spelling | doaj.art-c4148db5e84f4e1698f1626fe12a21cd2024-01-17T04:15:36ZengElsevierBasic and Applied Ecology1439-17912024-02-01746673Better red than dead: Plasticine moths are attacked less under HPS streetlights than LEDsBrett Seymoure0Tessa Parrish1Kaley Egan2Malcolm Furr3Danny Irwin4Cassie Brown5Morgan Crump6Jeremy White7Kevin Crooks8Lisa Angeloni9Biological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX 79968, USA; Living Earth Collaborative, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63105, USA; Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA; Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, CO 80523, USA; Corresponding author at: Biological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX 79968, USA.Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USADepartment of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, CO 80523, USABiological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX 79968, USADepartment of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, CO 80523, USADepartment of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, CO 80523, USADepartment of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, CO 80523, USA; Department of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Management, Penn State University, University Park, PA 16802, USADepartment of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, CO 80523, USA; Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division, National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO 80522, USADepartment of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, CO 80523, USADepartment of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USAAnthropogenic light at night is growing exponentially while many insect populations are in decline. Many nocturnal insects provide numerous ecosystem services and are attracted to anthropogenic lights at night resulting in decreased fitness, greater mortality and population declines. During twilight and night, moths are depredated by bats and birds, both of which use vision, among other strategies, to detect and prey upon moths. The visual detection of moths by predators is dependent upon the light environment illuminating the moth's body. Effects of anthropogenic light at night can differ drastically with the color (spectral composition) and intensity of light. Currently, high pressure sodium lamps (HPS) and light emitting diodes (LEDs) are common municipal light sources, and these lights differ spectrally, thus altering the visual scene. Most LEDs are broadband (i.e., white) whereas HPS are long wavelength dominant (i.e., amber); both of these light types can alter color perception of prey. To test if moths are more likely to survive under HPS lighting than LEDs and non-lit poles, we used plasticine clay models. Visual model analyses reveal that HPS lamps rendered moths more cryptic against their background than LEDs or ambient urban lighting, albeit with small differences in contrast that may not be biologically relevant. These results indicate that HPS lighting is the most insect-friendly lighting when considering depredation on insects in comparison to LED.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179123000713ALANLight pollutionMothsBirdsPredationUrbanization |
| spellingShingle | Brett Seymoure Tessa Parrish Kaley Egan Malcolm Furr Danny Irwin Cassie Brown Morgan Crump Jeremy White Kevin Crooks Lisa Angeloni Better red than dead: Plasticine moths are attacked less under HPS streetlights than LEDs Basic and Applied Ecology ALAN Light pollution Moths Birds Predation Urbanization |
| title | Better red than dead: Plasticine moths are attacked less under HPS streetlights than LEDs |
| title_full | Better red than dead: Plasticine moths are attacked less under HPS streetlights than LEDs |
| title_fullStr | Better red than dead: Plasticine moths are attacked less under HPS streetlights than LEDs |
| title_full_unstemmed | Better red than dead: Plasticine moths are attacked less under HPS streetlights than LEDs |
| title_short | Better red than dead: Plasticine moths are attacked less under HPS streetlights than LEDs |
| title_sort | better red than dead plasticine moths are attacked less under hps streetlights than leds |
| topic | ALAN Light pollution Moths Birds Predation Urbanization |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179123000713 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT brettseymoure betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT tessaparrish betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT kaleyegan betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT malcolmfurr betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT dannyirwin betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT cassiebrown betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT morgancrump betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT jeremywhite betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT kevincrooks betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds AT lisaangeloni betterredthandeadplasticinemothsareattackedlessunderhpsstreetlightsthanleds |