The total of native bee varieties in Europe facing extinction has increased twofold during the previous ten-year period, whereas the count of at-risk butterfly species has almost doubled.
This critical situation for essential pollinating species was revealed by research studies for the red list of threatened species, which determined that at least one hundred seventy-two bee species out of over 1900 were threatened with extinction in the European continent.
The number of butterfly species at risk of extinction in European nations has risen from thirty-seven to over sixty since the previous assessment, conducted a decade and a half ago. A single species, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been confirmed extinct.
Apart from their aesthetic appeal and cultural importance, pollinating insects like bees and butterfly species are essential supports for our physical condition, our food supplies and our economic systems – supporting the produce, vegetables and seeds that nourish us,” commented the IUCN’s director general. “The newest European red list assessments reveal significant difficulties, with threats increasing for butterfly types and essential non-managed bee varieties.”
The causes of the swift recent drops are the ongoing harm or degradation of habitats caused by agricultural intensification and land abandonment, wetland drainage, livestock overgrazing, and the use of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoid pesticides. The breaking up of environments suitable for pollinators significantly raises the danger of extinctions at local level.
Global warming is also revealed to be a major threat: Fifty-two percent of all endangered butterflies in Europe are imperilled by the climate emergency – approximately double the number as a ten years ago.
Nearly ninety percent of plants that flower in Europe rely on animal pollination, according to Dr Denis Michez. “Regrettably, non-managed bee populations are in drastic decline and are not easily replaceable by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If wild bees vanish, many wild plants might be at risk too – of which flower-rich meadows and lovely orchid types are just a couple of instances.”
Fifteen types of bumblebee types, which perform a vital function in aiding the pollination of peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bees, known for aiding tree pollination such as willows along with red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species unique to the European continent and the single type of this genus in European nations, is now evaluated as critically endangered – the scientific classification most akin to disappearance in the wild.
Butterflies that are solely present on mountain peaks are especially at risk to global warming as they have to climb upward as their environments become hotter but in the end run out of space. In southern Spain, the grayling of Nevada and the Andalusian anomalous blue are among more than 40% of European endemics (only found in Europe) threatened with extinction.
In the Mediterranean area, varieties such as the critically endangered Karpathos grayling butterfly are imperilled by intense drought and wildfires.
Meanwhile, in the Far North, global heating is leading to the timberline to move north by many meters each year, with bushes taking over marsh and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean Arctic deer can not anymore cross the ice sheets to feed on Arctic grasslands and keep them open. 8 butterfly varieties are facing extinction in this zone, including Freyja’s fritillary and the Arctic ringlet.
“The greatest environment for all these pollinators is bloom-filled grassy areas and that is declining quickly throughout European nations because of all these factors,” stated one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The encouraging aspect is that so many people care now and there’s a lot more understanding. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all participating nations have to halt the decline in pollinators by 2030, and they are going to have to initiate measures. There are property owners who are interested. Let’s hope they can receive the incentives that will assist them on their way.”
As stated by Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of measures for pollinating species which won’t reduce crop yields – and may enhance it – such as agricultural producers developing flower-rich margins around their cultivated areas.
Jessika Roswall, described the preservation condition of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “severe”.
“Immediate and joint measures is necessary to address this danger. Together with member countries, the EU Commission has put in place an European Union-wide observation system for pollinating species based on the European Union nature restoration legislation, which will help to track our progress. Now, we need to focus on application and collaboration with member states to protect our pollinating species,” she said.
The issuance of the evaluations of bees along with butterflies comes after the pioneering Europe-wide study on hoverflies, another essential group of pollinators. Released in 2022, it showed that thirty-seven percent of all hoverfly types in the European continent were threatened with extinction.
