Insect collection is a routine part of entomological research. In order to gather valuable data about insect biology and genetics scientists often capture and kill insects before bringing them back to a lab and investigating them there. This kind of study has afforded researchers many insights into insect biology and ecological conditions, but Lencioni has questions about its necessity when working with delicate populations.

Many of the insects that live on glaciers have small populations to begin with, and as Earth's glaciers continue to retreat, many are facing extinction. When scientists collect these insects in order to study them, they further reduce these already meager populations. In a paper published in Insect Diversity and Conservation in August 2021, Lencioni, who is the coordinator of the Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology at the MUSE Science Museum in Trento, Italy, argues that there is now enough data that ongoing collecting of insects can be significantly reduced.

Diamesa steinboecki has had a long journey to the streams in which Lencioni now studies it. It is hypothesized that the midge first settled in the region just before a Pleistocene glaciation, by way of Central Asia. She explained that the insect acts like an indicator species for scientists working in the region. "Finding it gives us reassurance that the environment is still healthy, the level of glaciation is still high, and the glacier feeding the stream is still large" she said.

According to Lencioni, people regard insect life differently than they do other animal life. "In the common imagination, insects are considered numerous," said Lencioni. "Even too numerous." Perhaps because of this perception, the implications of taking insects from their habitat are not considered fully. "The removal of animals from the environment leads to an imbalance, a disturbance, which can have consequences at ecosystem level," said Lencioni.