Conservation implications of shifting habitat use in migrating insects: Selection patterns in a threatened damselfly show that season‐specific actions are needed

Migratory insects use different habitats during their movements, exposing them to multiple threats, whose conservation implications are rarely considered. This study explores the conservation consequences of short-range insect migration, focusing on the regionally threatened damselfly Sympecma paedisca. In Italy, its breeding and wintering grounds are tens of kilometres apart, and how the species moves between them is unclear. To close this knowledge gap, we investigated the effects of multi-seasonal habitat composition on species' abundance at the landscape scale and its fine-scale habitat selection. At the landscape scale, the abundance of S. paedisca increased with the cover of well-preserved heathland, regardless of season. In contrast, farmland cover had varying effects: positive in summer, strongly negative in autumn and winter and neutral in spring. Habitat selection analysis showed that, in summer, the species uses all habitats according to availability. In autumn, heathlands were strongly positively selected, whereas farmland grassy margins were clearly negatively selected, and these differences are further strengthened in winter. These findings support the hypothesis that the species migrates from breeding to overwintering grounds in late summer, following grassy margins throughout the agricultural matrix. Individuals that survive the winter return in spring, likely following the same corridors. Conservation efforts should address the seasonally shifting species' needs, conserving well-preserved heathlands, crucial for overwintering, and grassy margins along crops to ensure the connectivity between breeding and wintering areas. The conservation of migrant insects requires measures targeting the different phases of their life cycle, even for short-distance migratory species.