Gauteng gogga vanishing
Photo: Ground-dwelling beetles are the most seriously affected of all insects, which are becoming rare in the Gauteng region
It is estimated that in the last decade a third of biodiversity integrity in the Gauteng region has been lost. Many people have suspected that this has resulted in fewer insects, but the study bears this out.
Pretoria entomologists Peter Hawkes and Max Clarke, who were commissioned by matriarch Strilli Oppenheimer to do the study, said the decline in insect life could have profound consequences for the long-term viability of ecosystems in Gauteng.
The worst affected are large insects, especially ground-dwelling beetles, which cannot fly away to find new homes. What is also worrying is that bee biodiversity has also declined.