INterSECTS, an exhibit by the artist Peter Kuper pays tribute to insects—minute creatures that are crucial to the food web and an integral part of human survival. Not only are some insects pollinators of flowering plants but also decomposers of waste. Kuper follows the interactions between Homo Sapiens and insects over the course of 400 million years in this exhibition.
Dung beetles exemplify a group of underappreciated insects. These insects remove waste by recycling it back into the soil, thus providing important agricultural and ecological benefits for humans. However, in a study conducted by researchers at Wits University (South Africa) the scientists realized that elevated carbon dioxide levels correlates to a lower survival rate and smaller size of dung beetles. While it is true that climate change may benefit some insect populations, it can also threaten the existence of other insects whose ecosystem service is critical to our survival.
“If all mankind were to disappear, the world would regenerate back to the rich state of equilibrium that existed ten thousand years ago. If insects were to vanish, the environment would collapse into chaos.” – E. O. Wilson (American biologist)
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Emily Liu