The total of non-managed bee types in Europe facing dying out has increased twofold in the last ten years, while the count of threatened butterfly species has close to doubled.
This critical situation for vital pollinating insects was disclosed by research studies for the red list of threatened species, which found that at least over 170 bee types out of nearly two thousand were facing extinction in the European continent.
The number of butterflies facing extinction in European nations has risen from over thirty-five to over sixty since the previous assessment, carried out over a decade past. A single species, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been classified as extinct.
Apart from their visual charm and cultural importance, pollinators like bees and butterflies are essential supports for our physical condition, our food supplies and our financial structures – sustaining the fruits, veggies and seeds that sustain us,” said the IUCN director general. “The most recent European red list assessments reveal serious challenges, with risks increasing for butterfly types and crucial non-managed bee types.”
The causes of the quick recent decreases are the ongoing harm or degradation of habitats caused by farming intensification and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, livestock overgrazing, and the application of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoids. The fragmentation of pollinator-friendly habitat substantially boosts the danger of local extinctions.
Climate change is also shown to be a significant danger: 52% of all endangered butterflies in the European continent are threatened by the climate crisis – approximately double the number as a decade ago.
Nearly nine out of ten of flowering plants in Europe require insect pollination, as stated by the wild bee assessment’s lead coordinator. “Unfortunately, wild bee colonies are in severe drop and are not easily replaceable by managed colonies,” he said. “If wild bees die out, many non-cultivated plants might be threatened too – of which meadows rich in flowers and lovely orchid types are just a couple of instances.”
Fifteen types of bumblebee types, which perform a vital function in fertilizing legumes like peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bee species, recognized for pollinating trees such as willow trees and red maples, are now categorized as at-risk. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee type exclusive to the European continent and the sole species of this genus in the European continent, is now evaluated as critically at risk – the scientific category most akin to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterfly types that are only found on high-altitude areas are especially at risk to climate change as they have to climb upward as their living spaces become hotter but ultimately run out of space. In southern Spain, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among more than 40% of types unique to Europe (exclusive to Europe) facing extinction.
In the Mediterranean area, varieties such as the critically endangered Karpathos grayling butterfly are imperilled by intense drought and wildfires.
At the same time, in the Far North, global heating is causing the timberline to advance northwards by dozens of meters each year, with bushes encroaching on wetlands and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean caribou can no longer cross the ice to feed on northern grasslands and maintain them clear. Eight types of butterflies are facing extinction in this region, including the fritillary of Freyja and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The greatest environment for all these pollinating insects is grassland rich in flowers and that is vanishing rapidly in the European continent because of all these reasons,” stated a lead coordinator for the butterfly assessment. “The encouraging aspect is that so many individuals are aware now and there’s a lot more understanding. Under the European Union nature restoration law, all participating nations have to turn around the decline in pollinating insects by 2030, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are landowners who are engaged. We hope they can receive the incentives that will help them on their way.”
As per Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of measures for pollinating insects which won’t reduce agricultural output – and might boost it – such as agricultural producers developing flower-rich margins around their cultivated areas.
the EU’s environment commissioner, described the conservation status of native bees, butterflies and additional pollinators as “dire”.
“Urgent and collective action is required to tackle this threat. Together with participating nations, the EU Commission has put in place an Europe-wide tracking system for pollinating species based on the European Union nature restoration legislation, which will assist in monitoring our progress. Now, we need to prioritize application and partnership with member states to preserve our pollinating insects,” she said.
The publication of the bee and butterfly assessments comes after the pioneering Europe-wide assessment of hoverflies, another crucial pollinating insect category. Released in 2022, it disclosed that thirty-seven percent of all hoverfly species in the European continent were threatened with extinction.
