Are scientific policies promoting internationalization related with a decline in descriptive taxonomy? Insights from the case of Spanish entomology.

This article examines how scientific policies aimed at internationalizing research since the late 1980s have influenced descriptive taxonomic entomology in Spain, particularly in relation to the Linnean and Wallacean shortfalls—gaps in species description and distribution mapping. The study analyzed temporal trends from 1900 to 2020 in Spanish entomological societies, journals, and PhD theses, finding that while the number of societies and published articles increased, many national journals—especially university-published ones—disappeared after the 1980s. Concurrently, PhD theses focused on descriptive taxonomy and inventorying declined sharply, with only a slow rise in molecular taxonomy, suggesting a weakening of traditional taxonomic expertise. The authors highlight that these trends may hinder Spain’s capacity to address biodiversity knowledge gaps and caution that similar scientific policies in other countries could produce comparable challenges, emphasizing the need to sustain both taxonomic expertise and local scientific outlets.