Use the excerpt from “Butterflies are disappearing in Ohio. Here’s what that means for insects everywhere” to answer the question.

Question

Which information is found in the section “What they found,” and which is in the section “Why this matters”? Drag each item to the correct location.



What they found

The overall numbers of butterflies in Ohio have decreased year over year for the past two decades—about 2 percent each year. When the researchers compared that rate to other long-term studies, the general decline matched the results of monitoring programs in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Spain.

But the team wanted to understand why some species of butterflies were harder-hit than others, and why some actually increased their populations over the course of the study.

They looked to see if related species of butterflies were all doing better or worse, and did not find a pattern.

On the other hand, they did notice that butterflies more commonly found in southern Ohio tended to do better than the more northern butterflies, perhaps because they are already better suited to respond to the planet’s warming climate.

“There are some weird cases too,” Wepprich said. “The wild indigo dusky-wing,” a brown butterfly with marbled wings that measure about an inch and a half across, “is doing really well in Ohio because a plant it eats is used as erosion control on construction sites. It’s three times more numerous now than it was 20 years ago.”

That’s intriguing, he said, because it demonstrates the massive—and rapid—effect that humans can have on insects with the dedication of relatively minor resources. It’s one note of optimism amidst a general trend of bad news.

Why this matters



Butterflies pollinate flowers, control plant populations by munching on leaves as caterpillars, and provide food for other insects, birds, amphibians and mammals. Their decline could have cascading effects on forests, prairies and even backyards across North America—vital wild habitats for an abundance of living things.

But butterflies also act as big, flashy beautiful warning signs for environmental change. “I think for most of us entomologists, butterfly data are being taken as a proverbial canary in the coal mine,” Shapiro said.

The decline of Ohio’s butterflies has been captured through statistics and recorded data rather than anecdotes, but the scientific literature abounds with anecdotes as well. One recent article from experienced researchers Daniel Janzen and Winnie Hallwachs, a pair who have studied tropical ecology in Mexico and Central America for half a century, warns that insects around the world are in the midst of a “gradual and very visible decline.”

The solution to a worldwide insect decline won’t be simple. “If it was just one thing, we would know how to fix it,” Moreau said. “But I think of the situation as, like, death by a thousand cuts.”

(2 points)
Put responses in the correct input to answer the question. Select a response, navigate to the desired input and insert the response. Responses can be selected and inserted using the space bar, enter key, left mouse button or touchpad. Responses can also be moved by dragging with a mouse.
What they found

Response area Response area

Why this matters

Response area Response area

Insect decline can affect habitats. There was a difference in how northern and southern Ohio butterflies were doing. Changes in butterflies can signal larger environmental changes. The data from Ohio matched studies from other countries.
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Answer 1

Here is how the information can be categorized:

What they found

• The overall numbers of butterflies in Ohio have decreased year over year for the past two decades—about 2 percent each year. When the researchers compared that rate to other long-term studies, the general decline matched the results of monitoring programs in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Spain.
• But the team wanted to understand why some species of butterflies were harder-hit than others, and why some actually increased their populations over the course of the study.
• There was a difference in how northern and southern Ohio butterflies were doing.
• The wild indigo dusky-wing is doing really well in Ohio because a plant it eats is used as erosion control on construction sites. It’s three times more numerous now than it was 20 years ago.

Why this matters

• Butterflies pollinate flowers, control plant populations by munching on leaves as caterpillars, and provide food for other insects, birds, amphibians and mammals. Their decline could have cascading effects on forests, prairies and even backyards across North America—vital wild habitats for an abundance of living things.
• Changes in butterflies can signal larger environmental changes.
• The solution to a worldwide insect decline won’t be simple. “If it was just one thing, we would know how to fix it,” Moreau said. “But I think of the situation as, like, death by a thousand cuts.”
• The decline of Ohio’s butterflies has been captured through statistics and recorded data rather than anecdotes, but the scientific literature abounds with anecdotes as well. One recent article from experienced researchers Daniel Janzen and Winnie Hallwachs warns that insects around the world are in the midst of a “gradual and very visible decline.”

Answer 2

what is the answer

Answer 3

Here is the correct categorization of the responses:

What they found

• There was a difference in how northern and southern Ohio butterflies were doing.
• The data from Ohio matched studies from other countries.

Why this matters

• Insect decline can affect habitats.
• Changes in butterflies can signal larger environmental changes.

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