Introduction: the audience and purpose for insect management plans

Many of the important issues in insect species management have been mentioned earlier, and these all appear in various guises in many speciesfocused plans. A satisfactory species management plan, for an insect or any other taxon, must contain several essential elements but must also be intelligible as a basis for action and, thus, be realistic and practical in scope. This necessitates clearly stated purposes and definition of the audience for that plan. Burbidge (1996) summarised such requirement as follows. For ‘purpose’ plans should:

1. Enable conservation work related to a species to be based on and guided by accurate information, as well as focused objectives and actions, and detailed forward estimates of cost.

2. Maximise the probability of recovery and minimise the probability of errors, including errors of omission, that might lead to the species becoming extinct.

3. Allow the public to know what is being done to save the species.

The desired audience should include:

1. Those who have a legal responsibility for nature conservation.

2. Those who will be funding and implementing the plan.

3. Those who want to know what is being done.

As Burbidge (1996) noted, it is likely that many of the audience will not have detailed scientific knowledge of the species involved. And, commonly for insects, potential managers may often lack experience and entomological background. It is thus important to couch all parts of the management plans in simple, clear language – if necessary with accompanying explanation of any obscure technical terms.