The boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis Boheman (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is an invasive alien species that can damage cotton plants and cause huge economic losses in the cotton industry. Currently, A. grandis is mainly distributed in the American continent. However, few studies have indicated the distribution and modification of its suitable global habitats after undergoing climate change. Based on the 339 distribution records of A. grandis and eight bioclimatic variables, we used the optimal MaxEnt model to predict the potential global distribution of A. grandis under the current (1970–2000) and future climatic scenarios (SSP5-8.5). The annual mean temperature (bio1) and isothermality (bio3) were the two most important bioclimatic variables, which indicates that the survival of A. grandis is extremely sensitive to temperature fluctuations. Under the current scenario, the highly suitable habitats were mainly distributed in America (the USA, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay), Africa (South Africa, Ethiopia, and Mozambique), Asia (Pakistan, India, Thailand, Burma, and China), and Oceania (Australia). In future scenarios (SSP5-8.5), the potential suitable global habitats reached the highest level in America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania in the 2090s. Our study provides a meaningful reference for researchers, quarantine officers, and governments to devise suitable management control strategies for A. grandis.

Helicoverpa zea, a well-documented and endemic pest throughout most of the Americas, affecting more than 100 species of host plants. It is a quarantine pest according to the Asia and Pacific Plant Protection Commission (APPPC) and the catalog of quarantine pests for plants imported to the People’s Republic of China. Based on 1781 global distribution records of H. zea and eight bioclimatic variables, the potential geographical distributions (PGDs) of H. zea were predicted by using a calibrated MaxEnt model. The contribution rate of bioclimatic variables and the jackknife method were integrated to assess the significant variables governing the PGDs. The response curves of bioclimatic variables were quantitatively determined to predict the PGDs of H. zea under climate change. The results showed that: (1) four out of the eight variables contributed the most to the model performance, namely, mean diurnal range (bio2), precipitation seasonality (bio15), precipitation of the driest quarter (bio17) and precipitation of the warmest quarter (bio18); (2) PGDs of H. zea under the current climate covered 418.15 × 10⁴ km², and were large in China; and (3) future climate change will facilitate the expansion of PGDs for H. zea under shared socioeconomic pathways (SSP) 1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, and SSP5-8.5 in both the 2030s and 2050s. The conversion of unsuitable to low suitability habitat and moderately to high suitability habitat increased by 8.43% and 2.35%, respectively. From the present day to the 2030s, under SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5, the centroid of the suitable habitats of H. zea showed a general tendency to move eastward; from 2030s to the 2050s, under SSP1-2.6 and SSP5-8.5, it moved southward, and it moved slightly northward under SSP2-4.5. According to bioclimatic conditions, H. zea has a high capacity for colonization by introduced individuals in China. Customs ports should pay attention to host plants and containers of H. zea and should exchange information to strengthen plant quarantine and pest monitoring, thus enhancing target management.

Microorganisms in the guts of insects enhance the adaptability of their hosts with different lifestyles, or those that live in different habitats. Tuta absoluta is an invasive pest that is a serious threat to tomato production in China. It has quickly spread and colonized Xinjiang, Yunnan and other provinces and regions. We used Illumina HiSeq next generation sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene to study and analyze the composition and diversity of the gut microbiota of three geographical populations of T. absoluta. At the phylum level, the most common bacteria in T. absoluta across all three geographical populations were Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. An uncultured bacterium in the Enterobacteriaceae was the dominant bacterial genus in the T. absoluta gut microbiotas. There were no significant differences in alpha diversity metrics among the Spanish, Yunnan and Xinjiang populations. The structures of the gut microbiota of the three populations were similar based on PCoA and NMDS results. The results confirmed that the microbial structures of T. absoluta from different regions were similar.

Invasive alien ant species pose serious threats to agricultural production, ecosystems, and human health in China. Solenopsis invicta Buren is the most destructive and aggressive invasive alien ant in China, causing serious agricultural and urban economic losses and public health concerns. Estimating its spatial distribution and ecological niche in China is crucial for S. invicta prevention and control. Based on 4195 occurrence records (4096 invasive occurrence records and 99 native occurrence records) and 10 environmental variables, we estimated the potential suitable area and ecological niche of S. invicta in China using the ensemble model and ‘ecospat’ package in R language. The mean AUC, KAPPA, and TSS values of the ensemble model were 0.989, 0.901, and 0.901, respectively, indicating that the ensemble model was better than the single-species distribution model for the simulation. Temperature, precipitation, and human factors are important variables that influence the distribution of S. invicta. Our results showed that the ecological niche similarity and equivalency test results showed that the ecological niches between native areas and China were not equivalent (D = 0.46, p = 0.001), but were more similar than would be expected by chance (p = 0.003). Under current climatic conditions, the total potential suitable area for S. invicta is 192.89 × 10⁴ km² in China, accounting for 20.09% of the land area in China; this land is mainly distributed in Hainan, Taiwan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Guizhou, Yunnan, Chongqing, Sichuan, and Henan. Under future climatic conditions, the potential suitable areas of S. invicta will further increase, while the highly suitable areas will shift to higher latitudes. We suggest that early warning and monitoring of S. invicta in the central and northern areas of China should be strengthened to prevent its further spread.

Linepithema humile (Mayr, 1868) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) is one of “100 of the world’s worst invasive alien species” listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). Although native to South America, this ant has spread worldwide via international trade. Currently, L. humile has not been found in China, and if it invades China, it might pose a potential risk to the native invertebrates, vertebrates, plants, and human livelihoods. Based on 2432 global occurrence records and ten bioclimatic variables, the optimized MaxEnt model was used to predict the potential suitable areas of L. humile in China. We analyzed the important bioclimatic variables affecting the potential suitable areas, and determined the changes in potential suitable areas under future climatic scenarios. Our results indicated that the mean temperature of the coldest quarter (Bio11), precipitation of the coldest quarter (Bio19), mean temperature of the wettest quarter (Bio8), and precipitation of the warmest quarter (Bio18) were the most important bioclimatic variables. Under the current climatic scenarios, the potential suitable area of L. humile in China is 80.31 × 10⁴ km², which is mainly located in Fujian, Zhejiang, Hunan, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Yunnan, and Hubei. Under future climate scenarios over coming decades, the potential suitable areas of L. humile showed an overall increase and a shift to higher latitudes, which indicated the invasion risk of L. humile in China will increase under climate change. Our findings provide the theoretical guidance for the early warning and monitoring of L. humile in China.