Neglected predatory insects trigger potential Key Biodiversity Areas in threatened coastal habitats

Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) have the potential to become a powerful tool for identifying regions that host unique biodiversity. With their great diversity, insects hold significant potential as indicators for global KBA mapping, even in highly specialized and narrowly distributed habitats. For instance, species adapted to fragmented ecosystems like coastal sand dunes-among the most heavily impacted habitats worldwide-can serve as critical indicators to trigger KBAs in these fragile environments. Despite their relevance as indicators, the inclusion of insects in KBA assessments remains limited, particularly for less-studied insect groups, whose distribution data is often fragmented and affected by taxonomic uncertainties. We tested selected KBA criteria on 26 antlion and owlfly species (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae) in Italy, including dune specialists, and performed a barcode gap analysis based on cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 mitochondrial marker (COI) to identify potential misidentifications, which could compromise the robustness of KBA assessments. Several endemic and dune specialist species trigger potential KBAs, showing limited (< 20% of their extent) overlap with the current protected area network, confirming the great value of these taxa in narrowly distributed habitats. We advise for the integration of both spatial and genetic data to increase accuracy of potential Key Biodiversity Areas assessments using neglected insect taxa.