A RECENT encounter with the UK`s All Party Parliamentary Group for Bees, Pollinators and Invertebrates has revealed something remarkable: British parliamentarians have formed a crossparty group specifically acknowledging invertebrates` profound connection with climate change, biodiversity, trade and human health. This initiative raises crucial questions about Pakistan`s own invertebrate populations. As our country experiences frequent floods, droughts and heatwaves, how are these climatic extremes affecting the unsung architects of our ecosystems? What implications do these impacts hold for Pakistan`s food security and public health? In Pakistan, the global and national significance of insects and invertebrates is profound yet overlooked and critically threatened. Their collective work underpins the very foundations of life: from pollinating the crops that feed us to decomposing organic matter that enriches our soils.

These unrecognised heroes of ecosystems are indispensable to biodiversity and food security.

Pakistan`s diverse ecology, from the Himalayas to the Indus delta, is home to a wide range of invertebrates crucial to environmental and economic health. As the backbone of the country`s agriculture, insect pollinators are vital for such crops as fruit, vegetables and cotton.

Beyond farming, insects play crucial roles in nutrient cycling in arid zones and maintaining the delicate balance of alpine flora. Aquatic invertebrates serve as indicators of water quality and support aquatic food chains in our water bodies. While credible data is hard to come by, some species like the Kashmir Kaiser-i-Hind butterfly are considered globally threatened. Threats to these species are multifaceted.

Bees are the most critical pollinators, enabling the reproduction of major food crops and wild flowering plants. Without them, farm yield would plummet. Beyond pollination, insects like ladybugs are natural pest controllers, reducing the need for chemical pesticides. Beetles and earthworms, known as detritivores, decompose organic matter, enriching soil and preventing erosion.

They also form the base of food chains, supporting birds, amphibians and mammals. The decline of insect populations is a crisis.

Impact of floods: Floods, like the recent ones inPakistan, cause mass invertebrate mortality, as widespread floods and prolonged inundation drown or wash away vast numbers of terrestrial insects and their nests. These events also lead to habitat destruction, as floodwaters destroy the plants and soil that invertebrates rely on for food and shelter. The water itself, often polluted, can be toxic in Pakistan.

Phenological mismatch and species migration: Perhaps most concerning is the slow climatic onset of phenological mismatches: the decoupling of synchronised relationships between insects and their food sources. As temperatures shift, bees may emerge from hibernation before their preferred flowers bloom, while butterfly lifecycles become misaligned with host plant availability.

Across Pakistan`s seven elevation zones, from the Thar desert to the Karakorams, these mismatches create unpredictable ecosystem dynamics.

Climate change has also triggered a northward movement of species. Rising temperatures and altered precipitation patterns have enabled disease vectors like mosquitoes to establish their habitat in previously cooler, higher-altitude regions. Studies in Islamabad and Peshawar show increasing dengue transmission risk as these vectors colonise northern Pakistan, while native invertebrate populations struggle with changing conditions.

Invertebrate wealth: Pakistan`s diverse ecosystems host a range of invertebrates crucial for environmental and economic resilience. Native bee species serve as the backbone of agriculture, pollinating key export crops like cotton, fruit and oilseeds. The economic value of these pollination services is invisible in the national account.

Beyond agriculture, many unique species represent significant biodiversity assets and potential flagships for ecotourism in northern Pakistan.

Aquatic invertebrates serve as vital indicators of water quality throughout our river systems, while beneficial insects like ladybugs provide natural pest control.

Growing international trade in invertebrates presents both opportunities and risks. Pakistan could develop indigenous biocontrol solutions for export while expanding its managed pollination services sector. The commercial production and harvesting of insects have emerged as a major trade commodity. However, unregulated tradeposes biosecurity threats, as seen with the global spread of Varroa mites that have devastated honeybee populations worldwide. While Pakistan also grapples with illegal wildlife trafficking of mammals and reptiles, invertebrate commerce requires distinct regulatory frameworks due to its unique biosecurity and ecological implications.

Governance gaps: Pakistan addresses invertebrate protection through multiple agencies, primarily the ministries of climate change and food security. Key legislation includes the Pakistan Plant Quarantine Act (1976) and the Pakistan Trade Control of Wild Fauna and Flora Act (2012) aligned with CIT ES. However, significant gaps remain. Despite research conducted by the Entomological Research Institute and various universities, the Pakistan Zoological Survey lacks a centralised national dataset for monitoring invertebrate populations a critical oversight given their importance to agricultural and food security.

Conservation priorities: Protecting Pakistan`s invertebrates requires immediate action across four fronts: conducting nationwide population surveys and enhanced entomological research to understand climate vulnerabilities; strengthening protected areas and converting lands along railway tracks and road networks into ecological corridors linking fragmented habitats; implementing agricultural reforms that reduce pesticide dependency through integrated pest management, while incentivising pollinator-friendly farming; and, developing a unified national action plan integrated into climate strategies. Crucially, Pakistan`s NDCs and national adaptation plans must prioritise investment in bees and pollinators as essential climate resilience components.

The invertebrate crisis threatens our food security, economic stability and ecological resilience.

The 2022 and 2025 floods exposed this catastrophic vulnerability while also demonstrating invertebrates` essential role in ecosystem recovery. As climate change intensifies phenological mismatches and drives species` migration or extinction, I cannot imagine a healthy childhood without chasing butterflies and fireflies or running away from wasps. • The wnter is a climate change and sustainable development expert