Insect threats and conservation through the lens of global experts

While several recent studies have focused on global insect population trends, all
are limited in either space or taxonomic scope. As global monitoring programs
for insects are currently not implemented, inherent biases exist withinmost data.
Expert opinion, which is often widely available, proves to be a valuable tool where
hard data are limited. Our aim is to use global expert opinion to provide insights
on the root causes of potential insect declines worldwide, as well as on effective
conservation strategies that could mitigate insect biodiversity loss. We obtained
753 responses from 413 respondents with a wide variety of spatial and taxonomic
expertise. The most relevant threats identified through the survey were agriculture
and climate change, followed by pollution,while land management and land
protection were recognized as the most significant conservation measures. Nevertheless,
there were differences across regions and insect groups, reflecting the
variability within the most diverse class of eukaryotic organisms on our planet.
Lack of answers for certain biogeographic regions or taxa also reflects the need
for research in less investigated settings. Our results provide a novel step toward
understanding global threats and conservation measures for insects.