Published November 5, 2025
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Toward a global repository of insect traits ( GRIT )

Creators

  • 1. Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (CE3C) & Global Change and Sustainability Institute (CHANGE), Faculdade de Ciências Universidade de Lisboa Lisbon Portugal
  • 2. Finnish Museum of Natural History (Luomus) University of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
  • 3. University of Helsinki
  • 4. State Scientific Research Institute Nature Research Centre Vilnius Lithuania
  • 5. CE3C—Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Azorean Biodiversity Group, CHANGE —Global Change and Sustainability Institute, School of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences University of Azores Azores Portugal
  • 6. Department of Biology Ghent University Ghent Belgium
  • 7. Ghent University
  • 8. Australian National Insect Collection CSIRO Canberra Australian Capital Territory Australia
  • 9. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
  • 10. Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research, School of Biology The Australian National University Acton Australian Capital Territory Australia
  • 11. Australian National University
  • 12. LASIGE, Faculdade de Ciências Universidade de Lisboa Lisbon Portugal
  • 13. Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Sofia Bulgaria
  • 14. UNESCO Chair on Sustainable Management of Conservation Areas, Faculty of Engineering & IT Carinthia University of Applied Sciences Villach Austria
  • 15. School of Biological Sciences The University of Western Australia Perth Western Australia Australia
  • 16. University of Western Australia
  • 17. Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture University of Tasmania Sandy Bay Tasmania Australia
  • 18. University of Tasmania
  • 19. D'Estrees Entomology and Science Services MacGillivray South Australia Australia
  • 20. School of Agriculture, Food & Wine The University of Adelaide Urrbrae South Australia Australia
  • 21. University of Adelaide
  • 22. South Australian Museum Terrestrial Invertebrates Adelaide South Australia Australia
  • 23. Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management University of California Berkeley Berkeley California USA
  • 24. University of California, Berkeley
  • 25. Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability California Academy of Sciences San Francisco California USA
  • 26. Musée National d'histoire Naturelle Luxembourg Luxembourg
  • 27. Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change, Museum Koenig Bonn Bonn Germany
  • 28. Department of Biological Sciences and Advanced Environmental Research Institute University of North Texas Denton Texas USA
  • 29. Department of Animal Biology and Edaphology and Geology University of La Laguna San Cristobal de la Laguna Spain
  • 30. BioSense Institute – Research Institute for Information Technologies in Biosystems University of Novi Sad Novi Sad Serbia
  • 31. Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development Government of Western Australia South Perth Western Australia Australia
  • 32. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Arizona Tucson Arizona USA
  • 33. University of Arizona
  • 34. Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences University of Cologne Cologne Germany
  • 35. University of Cologne
  • 36. Grupo de Agua, Salud y Ambiente, Facultad de Ingeniería Universidad El Bosque Bogotá Colombia
  • 37. Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology Auburn University Auburn Alabama USA
  • 38. Department of Entomology The Ohio State University Wooster Ohio USA
  • 39. Ohio State University
  • 40. Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology Stellenbosch University Stellenbosch South Africa
  • 41. North Central Agricultural Research Laboratory USDA Agricultural Research Service Brookings South Dakota USA
  • 42. Agricultural Research Service
  • 43. Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) Jokioinen Finland
  • 44. Department of Agroecology Aarhus University Slagelse Denmark
  • 45. Aarhus University
  • 46. McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History University of Florida Gainesville Florida USA
  • 47. University of Florida
  • 48. Great Plains Science Program Smithsonian Institution Bozeman Montana USA
  • 49. Smithsonian Institution
  • 50. Bonn Institute for Organismic Biology University of Bonn Bonn Germany
  • 51. University of Bonn

Description

Abstract The pace of biodiversity loss outstrips our ability to conserve Earth's most diverse group of named species—the insects (Arthropoda: Insecta). We increasingly rely on trait‐based metrics to understand how insects respond to and affect their environment. Traits provide insights that aid conservation assessment and planning. Yet, we lack a centralised trait database for insects, hampering insights that could inform ecological research and conservation management planning. We propose the creation of the Global Repository of Insect Traits (GRIT). GRIT will cover all world regions, realms and insect taxa. It will provide open and FAIR access to comprehensive trait data compiled from both currently available and future datasets. This proposal is an open call for all to join a global network of collaborators in a collective effort to accelerate the compilation of insect trait data and increase the transparency of data sharing and accessibility in the field. We envision the use of state‐of‐the‐art methods in trait acquisition and imputation to build computational tools that can extract and validate trait data from unstructured text, accelerating information availability by orders of magnitude. We anticipate the development of analytical tools that contribute to a governance structure, ensuring the long‐term success of the database and extraction tools. Finally, we outline future opportunities and identify several research questions that could be readily answered once data are assembled. Recognising the numerous challenges inherent in this project, we invite a robust discussion on strategies to effectively address obstacles.
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