The number of native bee types in Europe facing extinction has over doubled during the previous ten-year period, while the count of at-risk butterfly types has almost doubled.
This critical situation for vital pollinators was unveiled by scientific studies for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list, which found that at least one hundred seventy-two bee varieties out of 1,928 were facing extinction in European nations.
The count of butterfly types facing extinction in the European continent has risen from thirty-seven to 65 since the last study, performed a decade and a half ago. One species, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been classified as extinct.
In addition to their visual charm and cultural importance, pollinating insects like bees and butterfly species are essential supports for our health, our food systems and our economies – supporting the fruits, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” stated the IUCN director general. “The newest assessments of the European red list reveal serious challenges, with threats growing for butterfly species and vital wild bee varieties.”
The reasons of the quick recent decreases are the ongoing harm or degradation of living environments caused by intensive agriculture and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, excessive grazing by animals, and the utilization of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid pesticides. The breaking up of habitat friendly to pollinators significantly raises the risk of local extinctions.
Global warming is also demonstrated to be a significant danger: 52% of all at-risk butterfly species in the European continent are endangered by the climate emergency – about double the number as a ten years ago.
As many as nine out of ten of plants that flower in European nations depend on pollination by animals, as stated by the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Regrettably, wild bee populations are in sharp decrease and are not easily replaceable by managed colonies,” he said. “If non-managed bees vanish, many non-cultivated plants might be at risk too – of which meadows rich in flowers and lovely orchid types are just a few examples.”
15 varieties of bumblebee types, which perform a vital function in pollinating peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 types of cellophane bees, known for aiding tree pollination such as willows along with red maples, are now listed as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species unique to the continent and the sole species of this genus in European nations, is now assessed as critically at risk – the research category most akin to extinction in the wild.
Butterflies that are exclusively located on mountain peaks are particularly vulnerable to global heating as they have to climb upward as their habitats become hotter but eventually exhaust available space. In southern Spain, the Nevada grayling and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among over forty percent of species endemic to Europe (exclusive to Europe) threatened with extinction.
In the Mediterranean, types such as the severely threatened grayling of Karpathos are endangered by extreme dry conditions and fires.
In the meantime, in the Far North, global warming is causing the tree line to shift northward by tens of metres each year, with scrub taking over marsh and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean reindeer can no more cross the frozen water to graze Arctic meadows and prevent them from overgrowing. Eight butterfly species are threatened with extinction in this area, including Freyja’s fritillary and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The largest living space for all these pollinating insects is grassland rich in flowers and that is vanishing rapidly throughout European nations because of all these reasons,” said 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 EU nature restoration legislation, all member countries have to turn around the drop in pollinating species by the year 2030, and they are going to have to initiate measures. There are landowners who are engaged. It is hoped they can receive the motivations that will help them on their way.”
According to Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of measures for pollinators which won’t reduce agricultural output – and may enhance it – such as farmers developing flower-rich margins 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 required to address this risk. Along with participating nations, the European Commission has put in place an EU-wide observation system for pollinating insects based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will assist in monitoring our development. Now, we need to focus on execution and collaboration with participating nations to safeguard our pollinators,” she said.
The publication of the bee and butterfly assessments follows the pioneering European-wide evaluation of hoverflies, another vital group of pollinators. Issued in 2022, it showed that over one-third of all hoverfly species in European nations were threatened with extinction.
