The species-rich order of Lepidoptera is particularly well suited to describe the biodiversity of biotopes and protected areas, and also as indicators of their ecological condition. Due to the diversity in ecoregions and habitats, Lower Austria has a high diversity of butterflies – 3,600 of the 4,000 species known for Austria occur in Lower Austria.

In the project, around 1520 individuals of Lepidoptera from all subgroups are examined and DNA barcodes are generated. Only specimens from Lower Austria are sampled, the majority from nature conservation areas.
The individuals to be examined are selected according to the following criteria:

• difficult families and species groups (especially Microlepidoptera)
• rare and endangered species (e.g. FFH species)
• individuals from areas that are particularly valuable for nature conservation (Dürrenstein wilderness area, Drösing sand mountains, Oberweiden sand dunes, biosphere reserves, etc.)
• species for which Lower Austria has a special responsibility due to their limited occurrence
• suitable material from the collection (max. 15 years old, dry storage) is available
• complete and detailed metadata is available
• evidence for new species for Lower Austria (can only be planned to a limited extent) is given