We know insects are declining but we don’t have the data we need

Insects are the dominant form of animal life on earth. There are more species, more diversity, and more biomass. They are essential for life on the planet engaging in activities like pollination and decomposition. But the population health of 99% of species is poorly understood.

Of the 1% of species that have had IUCN assessments, 20% are considered threatened. If this trend continues that is an incredible number of species under threat. But we don’t have enough information to know. We have research, but mostly on species like butterflies and bees and mostly from Europe and North America.

We need the research because it is more than just the bees and butterflies that matter for the planet. We need to know what the drivers of insect decline are so that we can make policy recommendations and engage in changes. We also need data from more regions of the world.

This monitoring isn’t easy to do. Insects have complex lifecycles and vary in abundance at different times of the year and on longer cycles. But insects are so vital that we need more data. In their research, Cooke and colleagues (2025) propose a framework for the research to occur. This focuses on integrating multiple data sources to get a more unified and comprehensive view which is necessary to making recommendations quickly.

Have you noticed declining insect populations where you live?