Characterization of Wingbeat Frequency of Different Taxa of Migratory Insects in Northeast Asia

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Wingbeat frequency (WBF), an important variable in the study of flight biology, is very valuable in identifying migratory behavior. Thus, the WBF of migratory insects in Northeast Asia was detected and analyzed to establish the relationship between WBF and insect morphometrics. The results demonstrated that WBF differed across orders and that morphological variables were closely connected to this observed variation. This study may be helpful for increasing our understanding of flight biology and for developing new methods to identify the species of migrating insects. ABSTRACT: The ability to migrate is an important biological trait of insects, and wingbeat frequency (WBF) is a key factor influencing migratory behavior. The WBF of insects has been shown to be species-specific in previous studies; however, there is scant information on variations in WBF among different taxa of migratory insects. In 2018 and 2019, we investigated the relationship between WBF and 12 morphological variables (e.g., body mass, body length, total wing area, etc.) of the main migratory insects (77 species in 3 orders and 14 families) over the Bohai Sea in China. The WBF of migratory insects was negatively correlated with the 12 morphological variables and varied significantly among orders. In migratory lepidopterans, neuropterans, and odonatans, the ranges of WBF were 6.71–81.28 Hz, 19.17–30.53 Hz, and 18.35–38.01 Hz, respectively. Regression models between WBF and connecting morphological variables were established for these three orders. Our findings revealed the relationship between WBF and morphometrics of migratory insects in Northeast Asia, increased our knowledge on the flight biology of migratory insects, and provided a basis for developing morphological and WBF-based monitoring techniques to identify migrating insects.