Observed electric charge of insect swarms and their contribution to atmospheric electricity

2022 · Unclear · Insufficient evidence

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UnclearInsufficient evidencePaper 665

The authors combine theoretical and empirical evidence indicating that honeybee swarms directly contribute to atmospheric electricity in proportion to swarm density. A quantitative comparison suggests that charge contributions from some swarming insect specie…

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2022

Study typeother

Reported directionUnclear

Evidence ratingInsufficient

Abstract

Observed electric charge of insect swarms and their contribution to atmospheric electricity Hunting ER, O’Reilly LJ, Harrison RG, Manser K, England SJ, Harris BH, Robert D. Observed electric charge of insect swarms and their contribution to atmospheric electricity. iScience. 25(11):105241. 2022. doi:10.1016/j.isci.2022.105241. Abstract The atmosphere hosts multiple sources of electric charge that influence critical processes such as the aggregation of droplets and the removal of dust and aerosols. This is evident in the variability of the atmospheric electric field. Whereas these electric fields are known to respond to physical and geological processes, the effect of biotic sources of charge has not hitherto been considered. Here, we combine theoretical and empirical evidence to demonstrate that honeybee swarms directly contribute to atmospheric electricity, in proportion to the swarm density. We provide a quantitative assessment of this finding, by comparing the electrical contribution of various swarming insect species with common abiotic sources of charge. This reveals that the charge contribution of some insect swarms will be comparable with that of meteorologically induced variations. The observed transport of charge by insects therefore demonstrates an unexplored role of biogenic space charge for physical and ecological processes in he atmosphere. Excerpt The presented evidence that swarming, migrating insects transport charge in the lower atmosphere indicates that large collections of charged insects will contribute to a hitherto unrecognized source of electrical variability in the atmosphere. This recognition potentially carries various physically- and biologically relevant implications. For instance, entomogenic space charge is not considered in current climate models aimed at capturing the complex interplay between radiation and particulate matter, such as the atmospheric transport of dust. As atmospheric space charge enhances the aggregation and movement of aerial particles (Toth et al., 2020), it is conceivable that insect-derived space charges will also contribute to spatial changes in aerial particles. For example, it could be speculated that insect-driven charged particle collection and transport could contribute to long-range transport of desert dust, providing alternative explanations for the transport of large particles, which cannot be explained by physical processes alone (Toth et al., 2020; Does Van der et al., 2018). Further, insects are not the only source of biogenic charge in the atmosphere, as birds and microorganisms also carry charge and abound in the lower atmosphere (Badger et al., 2015; de Groot et al., 2021). The observed presence and magnitude of biogenic space charge invites further interdisciplinary research into the dynamic electrical interactions between physical and biological entities in the atmosphere. Open access paper: cell.com

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AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typeother

Effect directionunclear

PopulationNot supplied

Sample sizeNot supplied

ExposureNot supplied

Evidence strengthInsufficientConfidence: 66% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Outcomes measured

atmospheric electric field variability / atmospheric electricity contribution
electric charge transport by insect swarms
comparative magnitude versus abiotic (meteorological) charge sources

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "other",
  "exposure": {
    "band": null,
    "source": "atmospheric electricity / biogenic charge from insect swarms",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": null
  },
  "population": null,
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "atmospheric electric field variability / atmospheric electricity contribution",
    "electric charge transport by insect swarms",
    "comparative magnitude versus abiotic (meteorological) charge sources"
  ],
  "main_findings": "The authors combine theoretical and empirical evidence indicating that honeybee swarms directly contribute to atmospheric electricity in proportion to swarm density. A quantitative comparison suggests that charge contributions from some swarming insect species may be comparable to meteorologically induced variations.",
  "effect_direction": "unclear",
  "limitations": [],
  "evidence_strength": "insufficient",
  "confidence": 0.66,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "atmospheric electricity",
    "space charge",
    "insect swarms",
    "honeybee swarms",
    "biotic sources of charge",
    "meteorological variations"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": []
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.105241
PubMed: Not supplied

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