Disappearance of summer collection records for Menochilus sexmaculatus (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) during climate warming

ABSTRACTLong-term changes in the collection season of Menochilus sexmaculatus (Fabricius) were analysed based on 265 specimens collected from the Kansai district, central Japan, during 1949–2004. Results show that collection records in the summer months, July and August, decreased during this period, and that there were no summer records from 2000 to 2004. Concurrently, the annual mean and summer temperatures tended to increase and summer humidity decreased during this period in the Kansai district. Thus, the activity of M. sexmaculatus would be limited in summer because of the recent climate warming.