The number of native bee types in Europe confronting dying out has increased twofold during the previous ten-year period, while the number of at-risk butterfly species has nearly doubled.
This pressing issue for vital pollinating species was disclosed by research studies for the IUCN red list, which found that at least over 170 bee species out of 1,928 were threatened with extinction in the European continent.
The total of butterflies threatened with extinction in the European continent has risen from over thirty-five to sixty-five since the earlier research, performed over a decade past. One type, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been classified as extinct.
Apart from their visual charm and cultural importance, pollinating species like bees and butterfly species are lifelines for our physical condition, our food systems and our economic systems – sustaining the fruits, veggies and seeds that nourish us,” said the IUCN director general. “The newest European red list evaluations reveal serious challenges, with risks mounting for butterflies and vital wild bee varieties.”
The factors of the swift recent drops are the continuing destruction or damage of natural habitats caused by farming intensification and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the application of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid pesticides. The breaking up of pollinator-friendly habitat greatly increases the risk of extinctions at local level.
Global heating is also shown to be a significant danger: 52% of all threatened butterfly species in the European continent are imperilled by the climate change crisis – roughly double the number as a previous decade.
As many as ninety percent of plants that flower in European nations depend on insect pollination, according to the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Unfortunately, non-managed bee populations are in drastic decline and cannot readily be substituted by managed colonies,” he said. “If wild bees disappear, many wild plants might be threatened too – of which meadows rich in flowers and lovely orchid types are just a few examples.”
15 varieties of bumblebees, which perform a vital function in aiding the pollination of crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bee species, famous for fertilizing trees such as willows and red maples, are now categorized as at-risk. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee unique to the continent and the single type of this genus in Europe, is now evaluated as critically at risk – the research category nearest to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterfly types that are exclusively located on mountain peaks are especially at risk to global heating as they need to move uphill as their habitats become hotter but eventually run out of space. In southern Spain, the grayling of Nevada and the Andalusian anomalous blue butterfly are among over forty percent of types unique to Europe (solely present in Europe) threatened with extinction.
In the Mediterranean, species such as the highly at-risk Karpathos grayling butterfly are threatened by intense dry conditions and fires.
In the meantime, in the Arctic region, climate change is causing the timberline to advance northwards by many meters each year, with underbrush taking over marsh and tundra. Hotter climates also mean caribou can no more cross the ice sheets to browse Arctic meadows and prevent them from overgrowing. Eight types of butterflies are at risk of extinction in this region, including Freyja’s fritillary and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The biggest habitat for all these pollinating species is grassland rich in flowers and that is disappearing very fast across the European continent because of all these reasons,” said one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The good news is that so many people are concerned now and there’s a lot more consciousness. Under the European Union nature restoration law, all member countries have to halt the decrease in pollinating species by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to initiate measures. There are property owners who are involved. It is hoped they can receive the motivations that will assist them on their way.”
According to Warren, there is “readily achievable actions” in terms of steps for pollinators which will not lower agricultural output – and might boost it – such as agricultural producers establishing margins rich in flowers around their cultivated areas.
the EU’s environment commissioner, portrayed the conservation status of wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators as “severe”.
“Immediate and joint measures is required to tackle this danger. Together with member countries, the European Commission has implemented an Europe-wide tracking system for pollinating insects based on the European Union nature restoration legislation, which will aid in following our progress. Now, we need to focus on execution and collaboration with member countries to protect our pollinating species,” she said.
The publication of the bee and butterfly assessments follows the first European-wide study on hoverflies, an additional vital group of pollinators. Published in 2022, it revealed that over one-third of all hoverfly types in Europe were at risk of extinction.
