SynthesisNature communications2022
Meta-analysis reveals weak but pervasive plasticity in insect thermal limits.
Synthesis in Nature communications, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 44 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
44 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- How plastic are upper thermal limits? A comparative study in tsetse (family: Glossinidae) and wider Diptera.Journal of thermal biology · 2023Pooled it
- Meta-analysis reveals less sensitivity of non-native animals than natives to extreme weather worldwide.Nature ecology & evolution · 2023Pooled it
- Adaptive introgression between two Drosophila species enhances heat tolerance despite barriers to gene flow.PLoS biology · 2026Article
- Nesting behaviour predicts heat tolerance evolution and climate vulnerability in bees.Nature communications · 2026Article
- These Boots Are Made for Walking: Sex-Specific Physiological and Metabolomic Strategies Reflect Male-Skewed Vulnerability to Ocean Warming in a Keystone Amphipod.Global change biology · 2026Article
- Direction and Progression of Thermal Acclimation Effects on Ciliated Protist Populations Both Depend on Direction of Thermal Change.Ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- Elytral thickness and hidden species-specific traits shape passive thermal responses in beetles.The Journal of experimental biology · 2026Article
- Heat Tolerance and Its Plasticity in Freshwater and Marine Fishes Reflect Exposure to Extremes and Seasonal Variation in Habitat Temperatures.Ecology letters · 2026Review
- Article
- Narrow thresholds of canopy disturbance determine the microclimate buffering potential of tropical forests.iScience · 2026Article
- Embryos are largely understudied in a representative sample of journals in conservation physiology.Conservation physiology · 2026Article
- Heat but Not Cold Tolerance Is Phylogenetically Constrained in Greenlandic Terrestrial Arthropods Under Future Global Warming.Global change biology · 2026Article
- Local Thermal Extremes Shape the Nature of Herbivore Plasticity That Controls Plant Communities.Ecology letters · 2025Article
- Phenotypic variation in populations of the mosquito vector, Aedes aegypti, and implications for predicting the effects of temperature and climate change on dengue transmission.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Article
- Transcriptomic Plasticity in the Small Hive Beetle (Insects · 2025Article
- Beetling the heat - the diurnal Namib Desert beetle Onymacris plana cools by running.The Journal of experimental biology · 2025Article
- Size-dependent variation in thermal tolerance among tropical bee species.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2025Article
- Live fast, die young? Day- and night-warming affect the growth, survivorship, and behavior of caterpillars in the field.Ecology · 2025Article
- Seasonal plasticity of thermal tolerance indicates resilience to future climate in Australian damselflies.Oecologia · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Extreme temperature events are increasing in frequency and intensity due to climate change. Such events threaten insects, including pollinators, pests and disease vectors. Insect critical thermal limits can be enhanced through acclimation, yet evidence that plasticity aids survival at extreme temperatures is limited. Here, using meta-analyses across 1374 effect sizes, 74 studies and 102 species, we show that thermal limit plasticity is pervasive but generally weak: per 1 °C rise in acclimation temperature, critical thermal maximum increases by 0.09 °C; and per 1 °C decline, critical thermal minimum decreases by 0.15 °C. Moreover, small but significant publication bias suggests that the magnitude of plasticity is marginally overestimated. We find juvenile insects are more plastic than adults, highlighting that physiological responses of insects vary through ontogeny. Overall, we show critical thermal limit plasticity is likely of limited benefit to insects during extreme climatic events, yet we need more studies in under-represented taxa and geographic regions.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.