Threats and Challenges for Conservation of Meloidae (Coleoptera) in a Global Change Context, Emphasizing the Iberian Peninsula

Meloidae Gyllenhaal, 1810 (Coleoptera) presents a complex biology, but despite this, after decades there have been no significant advances in the understanding of its ecology or distribution, information on which the most basic conservation tools are based. Also, the discover of pseudocryptic complexes has turned the current situation even more difficult. In this delicate global change scenario, new generation of knowledge is pressing. A literature study has been carried out to summarize for the first time all known impacts. Also, samplings were carried out from 2012 and are still on development, with the help of Citizen Science. At least 32 species are suffering from human impacts, mainly habitat fragmentation due to an aggressive urban development and extensive agriculture with use of pesticides. Concretely for meloids of the Iberian Peninsula, more than 30% are endemic, many of them threatened: The information is in general, very brief, with 9 species having a greater coverage of information than the rest. Further studies are needed urgently.