Insect populations are declining dramatically worldwide. Whether insects are sentient or not, their decline has profound consequences for ecosystems and for the welfare of all animals that depend on them.
Insect decline is an ecological crisis with deep welfare implications. Even setting aside the question of insect sentience, the collapse of insect populations threatens the food supply of countless sentient vertebrates — birds, bats, fish, and amphibians — that depend on insects. The welfare of these animals is directly threatened by insect loss. If insects do have some form of sentience, as some evidence suggests, then the decline represents welfare harm at extraordinary scale. Either way, reversing insect decline is a moral priority from an animal welfare perspective.