The number of native bee species in Europe facing extinction has increased twofold in the last ten years, whereas the number of at-risk butterfly has almost doubled.
This dire scenario for crucial pollinating insects was revealed by scientific assessments for the IUCN red list, which found that at least over 170 bee species out of over 1900 were facing extinction in Europe.
The number of butterflies facing extinction in the European continent has grown from over thirty-five to sixty-five since the earlier research, carried out a decade and a half ago. A single species, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been classified as extinct.
“Beyond their visual charm and cultural value, pollinators like bees and butterfly species are essential supports for our physical condition, our food supplies and our economic systems – sustaining the fruits, vegetables and seeds that nourish us,” stated the IUCN’s director general. “The newest European red list assessments reveal significant difficulties, with dangers increasing for butterflies and crucial wild bee species.”
The causes of the quick recent decreases are the ongoing harm or degradation of habitats caused by intensive agriculture and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, livestock overgrazing, and the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoids. The breaking up of habitat friendly to pollinators greatly increases the risk of disappearances in specific areas.
Global heating is also demonstrated to be a significant danger: Fifty-two percent of all endangered butterfly types in European nations are endangered by the climate emergency – roughly twice as many as a decade ago.
As many as ninety percent of blooming plants in the European continent require pollination by animals, according to Dr Denis Michez. “Regrettably, wild bee colonies are in drastic decline and are not easily replaceable by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If wild bees disappear, many native plants might be threatened too – of which flower-rich meadows and beautiful orchid species are just a couple of instances.”
Fifteen types of bumblebee species, which play a crucial role in aiding the pollination of legumes like peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bees, recognized for pollinating trees such as willows and red maples, are now categorized as at-risk. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee type unique to the European continent and the sole species of this genus group in Europe, is now evaluated as critically endangered – the research category nearest to extinction in the wild.
Butterfly types that are only found on high-altitude areas are highly susceptible to climate change as they have to climb upward as their living spaces become warmer but ultimately run out of space. In Spain’s southern region, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the Andalusian anomalous blue are among more than 40% of types unique to Europe (solely present in Europe) facing extinction.
In the Mediterranean area, species such as the highly at-risk Karpathos grayling butterfly are imperilled by intense wildfires and drought.
In the meantime, in the Arctic Circle, climate change is resulting in the forest boundary to shift northward by many meters each year, with scrub taking over wetlands and tundra. Hotter climates also mean Arctic deer can no longer cross the frozen water to graze Arctic grasslands and keep them open. 8 butterfly varieties are at risk of extinction in this zone, including the fritillary of Freyja and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.
“The biggest living space for all these pollinating species is grassland rich in flowers and that is disappearing very fast throughout Europe because of all these reasons,” remarked Martin Warren. “The positive thing is that so many individuals are concerned now and there’s a lot more awareness. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all member states have to reverse the drop in pollinators by the year 2030, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are property owners who are engaged. We hope they can get the incentives that will support them on their way.”
As per Martin Warren, there is “readily achievable actions” in terms of measures for pollinators which will not lower food production – and might boost it – such as growers creating bloom-filled edges around their cultivated areas.
the EU’s environment commissioner, characterized the protection status of wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators as “critical”.
“Prompt and unified steps is necessary to confront this risk. Along with member countries, the Commission of the European Union has established an European Union-wide tracking system for pollinating species based on the EU nature restoration law, which will assist in monitoring our development. Now, we need to prioritize application and partnership with member countries to preserve our pollinating insects,” she said.
The release of the bee and butterfly assessments comes after the pioneering EU-wide assessment of hoverflies, an additional vital group of pollinators. Released in 2022, it revealed that 37% of all hoverfly types in European nations were threatened with extinction.
