“We knew that elevated ozone levels could affect insect mating systems,” said researcher Dr Nanji Jiang. Pollinating insects are crucial for crops but have been declining in recent decades, with habitat loss and pesticides blamed for the drops. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Germany said the finding may apply to other species such as bees and butterflies, and could be contributing to global insect decline.
Air pollution is changing the mating behaviour of fruit flies, with males forming flirtatious same-sex conga lines because they can no longer sniff out females, scientists have found.Įxperts have discovered that high levels of ozone destroys chemical mating signals, leaving the confused insects struggling to hook up with a suitable partner.
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