Pollinators are essential for the functioning of ecosystems and for human well-being. Bees, butterflies, and hoverflies contribute every day to the reproduction of plants and make possible a large part of the fruits, vegetables and natural landscapes that are part of our daily lives. However, many of these species are now under pressure due to climate change, habitat loss or pesticide use.
To protect them, you must first know them. And to know them, it is essential to be able to identify them correctly.
With this objective, the Museum of Natural Sciences of Barcelona (MCNB) has participated in the project INC-STEP (Instigating a National Reference Collection for Spain’s Threatened Pollinators), an initiative completed at the end of 2025 that has promoted the creation of a national reference collection of endangered pollinating insects in Spain. Within the framework of this project, the Museum participated in the development of a pilot reference collection of 6 groups of pollinating insects. Among others, bumblebees (Bombus spp.), one of the most important groups of pollinators and at the same time the most difficult to identify at the species level.
The project has had the participation of the Museum’s Arthropod curators, Berta Caballero and Irene Lobato, and is part of the European programme TETTRIs (Transforming European Taxonomy through Training, Research and Innovations), aimed at transforming the European taxonomy through research, innovation and specialised training.
What is a reference collection and why is it so important?
Reference collections are sets of scientifically identified and documented specimens –insects, plants or other organisms– preserved in museums and research centres. These collections constitute a fundamental tool for taxonomy, the scientific discipline responsible for identifying, describing and classifying species.
Berta Caballero, Museum’s Arthropod curator at the TETTRIs Final Event
“In the case of pollinators, the reference collections are especially relevant because many species have very subtle morphological differences that are often difficult to recognize without sufficient experience,” explains Caballero. And she continues: “The lack of accessible identification materials represents an obstacle for both scientific monitoring programs and citizen science projects.”
The INC-STEP project aims to respond to this challenge by mobilizing thousands of specimens preserved in Spanish scientific collections and making them available to the research community and society. Specifically, around 40,000 specimens from five different collections throughout the state have been reviewed, combining face-to-face review by taxonomists and the use of high-resolution digital images.
Six key groups of pollinators
INC-STEP has worked on six groups of pollinators considered a priority due to their ecological importance and the taxonomic challenges they present: the genera Bombus, Colletes and Xylocopa (Hymenoptera), the families Hesperiidae and Papilionidae (Lepidoptera), and the subfamily Eristalinae (Diptera, hoverflies).
In addition to the MCNB, the project has had the expertise of four state institutions dedicated to the research, conservation and dissemination of natural heritage: the National Museum of Natural Sciences of Madrid (MNCN-CSIC), coordinator of the project, the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), the Museum of Natural Sciences of the University of Navarra (MCN-UN), and the Museum of Natural History of the University of Valencia (MUVHN).
With funding of more than €199,000 and active since January 2024, INC-STEP was one of the twelve projects promoted by TETTRIs to develop innovative solutions to the global loss of biodiversity.
The role of the Natural Sciences Museum of Barcelona
From the Department of Arthropods, the tasks included the organization, digitization and photographic documentation of the entomological collections, as well as the support of visits by taxonomic specialists and the creation of informative materials linked to the project.
For Irene Lobato, curator of Arthropods and specialist in gall wasps, “expert taxonomists are essential to preserve and take advantage of scientific collections, especially in the case of arthropods. Without these specialists, many specimens would remain unidentified and could not be used in management programs or biodiversity studies.”
Lobato also highlights the importance of ensuring generational change within European taxonomy: “Projects such as INC-STEP contribute to supporting taxonomists at all stages of their careers and help ensure the continuity of this discipline.”
In this line, INC-STEP also promoted the training of new taxonomists and scientific collection staff. Within the framework of the project, the Museum organized the “Know your bees” course at the Botanical Garden of Barcelona, dedicated to the taxonomy and ecology of bees and aimed at the monitoring and conservation of pollinators.
As a closing of the project, both curators have recently attended the TETTRIs Final Event (see photographs), held at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS, Brussels), where they have presented the results of the project as a model of success of a satellite project, given the high degree of achievement of the proposed milestones.