Which insects are crawling or flying in your garden or neighbourhood? That is the question that HLN wants to answer this summer together with you. Meanwhile, the counter is at 247,000 insects. So many insects have already been captured digitally in Flanders in barely 2 weeks. This concerns no less than 3900 different species. A successful start to the insect summer. “We had not expected such enthusiasm”.
1 in 3 insects are on the verge of disappearing. A disaster for nature and ourselves. Because we desperately need these little critters. They pollinate plants, are food for many animals and clean up all kinds of dead material. So our insects need our help. With this approach, HLN launched ‘the insect summer’ together with Natuurpunt.
Because the better we know our insects, the better we can help them. By capturing them digitally, we can map out which insects are crawling or flying around our gardens and neighbourhoods. So don’t slap, but app. And that has happened en masse. Just under a quarter of a million insects have already been observed and captured on camera.
“We were surprised when we received the figures this week,” says Martijn Peters (science expert HLN). He is an ambassador for HLN’s insect summer. “More than 247,000 insects have already been photographed. And that while the insect summer has only just begun. We are therefore very happy with this incredible start. Observing 3900 different species in 2 weeks, that shows the enthusiasm of the Flemish people for insects.” At the moment, most insects have been spotted in Ghent, followed by Leuven and Antwerp.
And Martijn is gradually starting to dream of 1 million observations by the end of this campaign. “It seems more and more feasible. How great would it be if we crossed that 1 million mark. In any case, I think it’s fantastic that we are massively helping our insects, our scientists and ourselves by learning something. Because insects are simply great animals that often have an unjustified negative reputation. The world down there is definitely worth a closer look. I would certainly advise those who are not participating yet to give it a try. But beware: it is addictive.”
ARE YOU ALREADY PARTICIPATING IN THE INSECT SUMMER?
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