Across the Changbai and Dongling Mountains past
studies have focused primarily on vegetation (Chen et al'
1964; Ma et al. 1995;Liu 1997; Sun e/ al. 2004; Chen
2006; Sang and Bai 2009). At Changbai Shan, studies
of the vegetation composition and climate started during
the early establishment of the CNR. Since the late 1980s,
studies of biodiversity patterns and community succession
have been resumed (Hao and Tao 1994; Hao and Yang
2002;Zhan et a1.2004;Liet a1.2008; Sang and Bai 2009).
In Dongling Mountain, historical vegetation studies can
be traced to the mid-20th century. Since the mid-1950s, a
series of studies have been conducted by the Institute of
Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences investigating forest
structure, biodiversity and productivity across different
forest types (e.g. Jiang et al.1994; Huang and Chen 1994;
Ma et ql.1995). At both Changbai Shan and Dongling
Shan, very little attention has been given to species-rich
insect communities, their conservation status, the likely
influence of past and future climate change on these
communities, and interactions between vegetations and
insects. Previous long-term vegetation surveys and climate
monitoring at both sites have nonetheless already laid a
solid foundation for such studies. To carry out an analysis
of insect species richness and distribution in these areas is
a highly important and valuable endeavor.