Pollinator populations are declining globally from habitat loss, pesticide use, and disease. The welfare of billions of insects is implicated alongside the ecological consequences of their loss.
Pollinator decline raises both ecological and welfare concerns. The welfare dimension — whether bees, butterflies, and other insects experience something morally relevant when they are poisoned, starved of habitat, or exposed to pathogens — depends on unresolved questions about insect sentience. The growing evidence that insects have more complex neural processing than previously thought warrants precautionary welfare consideration. The ecological stakes provide additional urgency: pollinator loss threatens food systems and wild plant communities that support vast numbers of animal species.