CANTU SALAZAR Lisette
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VRAY Sarah
Send an emailWild pollinator monitoring programme Luxembourg
Pollinating insects – such as wild bees, hoverflies, beetles, and many other species – play a crucial role in maintaining ecosystems and supporting human well-being. They contribute to plant reproduction, food production, and overall biodiversity.
However, there is growing evidence that wild pollinators are declining at both regional and global scales, largely due to human activities such as land-use change, pollution, climate change, and habitat loss. Despite their importance, significant knowledge gaps remain regarding their status, long-term trends, and the drivers of their decline.
Addressing these gaps has become a priority for biodiversity conservation, with multiple national, European, and international initiatives calling for improved monitoring systems. Luxembourg is actively committed to protecting pollinators and their habitats, but effective action requires robust, long-term data to understand how populations change and how environmental pressures affect them.
The MONIPOL project responds to this need by establishing a standardized, long-term, and nationwide monitoring scheme for wild pollinating insects in Luxembourg. Along with the Luxembourg Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (LUBMS), MONIPOL is part of the Luxembourg Pollinator Monitoring Scheme (LUPoMS) coordinated by LIST.
Each year, from April to September, scientists conduct systematic surveys across a network of sites distributed throughout the country. These locations are selected to represent a wide range of environmental conditions, ensuring that the data collected reflect national-scale patterns.
Monitoring is based on two complementary and standardized methods:
These approaches provide both targeted and comprehensive insights into pollinator communities. Field efforts are strengthened through the involvement of citizen scientists, increasing data collection capacity while promoting public engagement.
By implementing a coordinated, country-wide monitoring program, MONIPOL establishes a critical foundation for understanding and protecting pollinators in Luxembourg.
Scientifically, the project generates standardized datasets that enable the analysis of long-term population trends, species distributions, and community dynamics. These data are essential for identifying drivers of change and for advancing research on biodiversity and ecosystem services such as pollination.
At the policy level, MONIPOL directly supports national and European conservation strategies. Its standardized methodology aligns with broader initiatives to harmonize pollinator monitoring across countries, contributing to comparable indicators and supporting reporting obligations. This strengthens Luxembourg’s capacity to contribute to international biodiversity assessments and to track progress toward conservation targets.
From a societal perspective, the project highlights the importance of pollinators for food security, ecosystem stability, and human well-being. By involving citizen scientists, it fosters public awareness, environmental literacy, and active participation in biodiversity conservation.
Ultimately, the project supports a transition toward evidence-based environmental management, where high-quality data, scientific expertise, and public engagement come together to safeguard pollinators and the ecosystems they sustain.
Reverté S., Miličić M., Ačanski J., Andrić A., Aracil A., Aubert M., Balzan M.V., Bartomeus I., Bogusch P., Bosch J., Budrys E., Cantú-Salazar L., Castro S., Cornalba M., Demeter I., Devalez J., Dorchin A., Dufrêne E., Đorđević A., Fisler L., Fitzpatrick Ú., Flaminio S., Földesi R., Gaspar H., Genoud D., Geslin B., Ghisbain G., Gilbert F., Gogala A., Grković A., Heimburg H., Herrera-Mesías F., Jacobs M., Janković Milosavljević M., Janssen K., Jensen J.K., Ješovnik A., Józan Z., Karlis G., Kasparek M., Kovács-Hostyánszki A., Kuhlmann M., Le Divelec R., Leclercq N., Likov L., Litman J., Ljubomirov T., Madsen H.B., Marshall L., Mazánek L., Milić D., Mignot M., Mudri-Stojnić S., Müller A., Nedeljković Z., Nikolić P., Ødegaard F., Patiny S., Paukkunen J., Pennards G., Pérez-Bañón C., Perrard A., Petanidou T., Pettersson L.B., Popov G., Popov S., Praz C., Prokhorov A., Quaranta M., Radchenko V.G., Radenković S., Rasmont P., Rasmussen C., Reemer M., Ricarte A., Risch S., Roberts S.P.M., Rojo S., Ropars L., Rosa P., Ruiz C., Sentil A., Shparyk V., Smit J., Sommaggio D., Soon V., Ssymank A., Ståhls G., Stavrinides M., Straka J., Tarlap P., Terzo M., Tomozii B., Tot T., van der Ent L.J., van Steenis J., van Steenis W., Varnava A.I., Vereecken N.J., Veselić S.
Insect Conservation and Diversity, vol. 16, n° 6, pp. 758-775, 2023