The number of native bee types in European nations facing disappearance has more than doubled over the past decade, while the number of threatened butterfly species has close to doubled.
This dire scenario for essential pollinating species was disclosed by scientific assessments for the IUCN red list, which found that at least over 170 bee species out of 1,928 were at risk of extinction in European nations.
The number of butterfly types facing extinction in Europe has risen from thirty-seven to sixty-five since the last study, carried out a decade and a half ago. A single species, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been classified as extinct.
In addition to their beauty and cultural significance, pollinating insects like bees along with butterflies are crucial elements for our health, our food supplies and our financial structures – maintaining the fruits, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” said the IUCN’s director general. “The newest European red list evaluations reveal serious challenges, with dangers mounting for butterfly types and essential wild bee species.”
The causes of the quick recent decreases are the continuing harm or degradation of natural habitats caused by agricultural intensification and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the utilization of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoids. The division of environments suitable for pollinators significantly raises the threat of local extinctions.
Global warming is also shown to be a significant danger: 52% of all at-risk butterflies in European nations are threatened by the climate crisis – about double the number as a ten years ago.
Up to 90% of blooming plants in the European continent depend on pollination by animals, as per the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Regrettably, wild bee colonies are in sharp decrease and cannot readily be substituted by managed colonies,” he said. “If non-managed bees vanish, many non-cultivated plants might be threatened too – of which meadows rich in flowers and lovely orchid types are just a handful of illustrations.”
Fifteen types of bumblebees, which play a crucial role in fertilizing legumes like peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bees, famous for aiding tree pollination such as willows along with red maples, are now categorized as at-risk. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee exclusive to the continent and the only species of this biological genus in Europe, is now classified as severely threatened – the research category most akin to extinction in the wild.
Butterfly types that are solely present on mountain peaks are especially at risk to climate change as they have to climb upward as their habitats become hotter but eventually run out of space. In the southern part of Spain, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among above 40 percent of European endemics (only found in Europe) threatened with extinction.
In the Mediterranean, varieties such as the highly at-risk Karpathos grayling are threatened by intense wildfires and drought.
At the same time, in the Arctic Circle, climate change is resulting in the forest boundary to advance northwards by dozens of meters each year, with underbrush encroaching on wetlands and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean reindeer can not anymore cross the frozen water to graze northern grasslands and maintain them clear. 8 butterfly varieties are at risk of extinction in this area, including the fritillary of Freyja and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The greatest habitat for all these pollinating insects is flower-rich grassland and that is disappearing very fast throughout Europe because of all these factors,” remarked one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The encouraging aspect is that so many people are aware now and there’s a lot more awareness. Under the European Union nature restoration law, all member states have to halt the decline in pollinating insects by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are landowners who are engaged. We hope they can get the incentives that will support them on their way.”
According to Martin Warren, there is “readily achievable actions” in terms of action for pollinators which won’t reduce agricultural output – and may enhance it – such as growers establishing bloom-filled edges around their fields.
the EU’s environment commissioner, portrayed the protection status of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “critical”.
“Urgent and collective action is needed to tackle this threat. In collaboration with member states, the Commission of the European Union has put in place an EU-wide tracking system for pollinators based on the European Union nature restoration legislation, which will aid in following our advancement. Now, we need to concentrate on implementation and collaboration with participating nations to preserve our pollinating species,” she said.
The release of the evaluations of bees along with butterflies comes after the first Europe-wide study on hoverflies, an additional crucial pollinating insect category. Issued in 2022, it revealed that 37% of all hoverfly varieties in Europe were threatened with extinction.
