The number of non-managed bee varieties in the European continent experiencing extinction has over doubled during the previous ten-year period, and the count of threatened butterfly types has nearly doubled.
This pressing issue for vital pollinating species was revealed by research studies for the IUCN red list, which found that at least 172 bee varieties out of 1,928 were facing extinction in European nations.
The count of butterfly types at risk of extinction in Europe has increased from over thirty-five to sixty-five since the previous assessment, carried out over a decade past. A single species, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
“Beyond their visual charm and cultural importance, pollinating species like bees along with butterflies are lifelines for our health, our food systems and our financial structures – maintaining the fruits, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” said the IUCN’s director general. “The most recent European red list evaluations reveal significant difficulties, with risks growing for butterfly types and vital wild bee varieties.”
The factors of the swift recent drops are the ongoing damage or destruction of living environments caused by agricultural intensification and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, excessive grazing by animals, and the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid pesticides. The fragmentation of habitat friendly to pollinators substantially boosts the threat of extinctions at local level.
Global heating is also revealed to be a major threat: Fifty-two percent of all endangered butterfly species in the European continent are endangered by the climate change crisis – approximately double the number as a previous decade.
Nearly nine out of ten of blooming plants in European nations depend on pollination by animals, according to Dr Denis Michez. “Sadly, native bee colonies are in sharp decrease and are not easily replaceable by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If native bees disappear, many wild plants might be at risk too – of which bloom-filled grasslands and lovely orchid types are just a couple of instances.”
Fifteen types of bumblebees, which play a crucial role in aiding the pollination of peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bee species, famous for aiding tree pollination such as willow trees and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species found only in the European continent and the single type of this genus in Europe, is now classified as critically endangered – the scientific classification most akin to extinction in the wild.
Butterfly species that are only found on high-altitude areas are particularly vulnerable to global heating as they need to move uphill as their habitats become more heated but in the end run out of space. In Spain’s southern region, the Nevada grayling and the Andalusian anomalous blue are among more than 40% of species endemic to Europe (only found in Europe) threatened with extinction.
In the Mediterranean, types such as the critically endangered Karpathos grayling are endangered by severe wildfires and drought.
In the meantime, in the Far North, climate change is resulting in the forest boundary to shift northward by many meters each year, with bushes taking over bog and tundra. Hotter climates also mean reindeer can not anymore cross the ice to graze Arctic meadows and prevent them from overgrowing. Eight butterfly species are facing extinction in this zone, including Freyja’s fritillary and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.
“The greatest habitat for all these pollinators is grassland rich in flowers and that is declining quickly throughout the European continent because of all these elements,” said Martin Warren. “The encouraging aspect is that so many individuals are concerned 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 initiate measures. There are landowners who are engaged. It is hoped they can get the motivations that will help them on their way.”
As stated by the coordinator, there is “easy opportunities” in terms of action for pollinating insects which will not decrease agricultural output – and could improve it – such as agricultural producers creating margins rich in flowers around their farmland.
Jessika Roswall, characterized the protection status of native bees, butterflies and additional pollinators as “severe”.
“Immediate and joint measures is needed to tackle this danger. Together with member states, the Commission of the European Union has implemented an European Union-wide tracking system for pollinating insects based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will help to track our development. Now, we need to concentrate on application and cooperation with member countries to safeguard our pollinators,” she said.
The publication of the bee and butterfly assessments follows the pioneering Europe-wide evaluation of hoverflies, a further vital pollinator group. Published in 2022, it disclosed that 37% of all hoverfly species in the European continent were threatened with extinction.
