Biological invasions: a global threat to insect diversity

Globalization is accelerating the intentional and unintentional introductions of species beyond their natural biogeographic boundaries. Of all introduced species, only a small proportion become invasive, causing a wide variety of negative impacts. Some of them have detrimental consequences for native insects. In this chapter, which serves as an introduction to this book, we discuss the role of biological invasions as a driver of the current global decline in insect diversity, as well as the importance of considering biological invasions when planning insect conservation actions.