Figure 45.15: Climate Change Affects Life Histories A long-term study in the Netherlands shows that warming temperatures have affected the seasonal cycle of the winter moth Operophtera brumata, whose caterpillars are now emerging before the leaves on which they feed have expanded, causing more caterpillars to starve. Great Tits (Parus major) are not laying eggs earlier. They now have difficulty finding enough caterpillars to feed their nestlings because they have missed the time of peak caterpillar abundance, and there are fewer caterpillars overall.