What winter is like for Insects

Did you know that many insects will go through diapause to get through the winter? Diapause can act as a form of hibernation that is genetically pre-programmed into certain species. This can happen during certain times of the year or certain periods in their life cycle. During this time, any development of the organism is put on hold in order to save enough energy for the creature to survive. It is normal for all reproductive functions to stop completely and for the organism to stop eating. Diapause can happen in any stage of the insects life, whether they are an egg, larvae, pupae, or adult.

Diapause can be triggered by things like temperatures, or the amount of sunlight present. So for some ants and ladybugs in the Okanagan and Similkameen, their bodies will be triggered by cooler temperatures and shorter periods of sunlight and they will enter a state of diapause until spring. They can find a safe space to hunker down in order to wait out the harsh winter conditions. These can be places like under leaf litter, in loose tree bark, or sometimes in sheds or other human structures. Then when spring hits, all bodily functions are back on and it is time to be a normal bug again.