The social fabric of citizen science—drivers for long-term engagement in the German butterfly monitoring scheme

Insect conservation needs sound information on species distribution trends. Developing this evidence relies—in practice—on long-term engagement of volunteers who observe and record species over large spatial and temporal scales. Many biodiversity monitoring schemes, including those for insects, are highly dependent on conservation-based citizen science programs with a long-term continuity. As these schemes are built entirely on good will, the...