Scientists track butterfly migrations to study climate change in Peru

Researchers at Finca Las Piedras in the Madre de Dios region of the Peruvian Amazon are documenting the behavior of butterflies and moths to understand how the ecosystem responds to environmental shifts.

The team monitors these insects because their short life cycles allow them to reflect the impacts of climate change much faster than humans. Geoffrey Gallice and his team discovered a mass migration of the Panacea prola butterfly in 2019.

These dark butterflies with reddish undersides move toward the center of the Amazon basin during the dry season. This marked the first documented insect migration in Peru. The scientists use a network of 20 traps, some placed high in the tree canopy, to collect and catalog specimens. The research center currently houses a collection of 50,000 specimens available to global researchers.

The team monitors how different species react to seasonal changes, such as the Catonephele acontius butterfly, which pauses reproduction to save energy. Scientists warn that rising temperatures could disrupt the timing of these migrations, potentially causing butterflies to arrive when their host plants are unavailable. The researchers are also working to identify the specific plants that feed the caterpillars of the thousands of species living in the area.

While they have recorded over 300 plant-caterpillar relationships, they still do not know the host plants for 99% of the local species. Gallice estimates that completing this catalog could take between 50 and 100 years.