The number of native bee types in European nations facing extinction has more than doubled during the previous ten-year period, whereas the total of threatened butterfly types has close to doubled.
This dire scenario for essential pollinating insects was unveiled by scientific assessments for the IUCN red list, which found that at least 172 bee types out of nearly two thousand were at risk of extinction in European nations.
The count of butterfly types at risk of extinction in European nations has grown from over thirty-five to over sixty since the previous assessment, conducted 14 years ago. One species, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
Apart from their aesthetic appeal and cultural significance, pollinators like bees and butterflies are lifelines for our health, our food systems and our financial structures – supporting the produce, vegetables and seeds that nourish us,” said the IUCN’s director general. “The latest assessments of the European red list reveal significant difficulties, with dangers mounting for butterflies and crucial native bee types.”
The factors of the rapid recent declines are the persistent destruction or damage of habitats caused by intensive agriculture and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, excessive grazing by animals, and the application of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid chemicals. The division of habitat friendly to pollinators greatly increases the threat of extinctions at local level.
Global heating is also demonstrated to be a significant danger: Over half of all endangered butterfly species in Europe are endangered by the climate emergency – about double the number as a ten years ago.
As many as nine out of ten of blooming plants in the European continent depend on insect pollination, as per the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Sadly, non-managed bee populations are in severe drop and are not easily replaceable by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If non-managed bees vanish, many non-cultivated plants might be in danger as well – of which bloom-filled grasslands and attractive orchid varieties are just a few examples.”
Fifteen types of bumblebees, which play a crucial role in pollinating peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bee species, recognized for aiding tree pollination such as willow trees and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species unique to the mainland and the single type of this biological genus in the European continent, is now evaluated as severely threatened – the scientific category nearest to extinction in the wild.
Butterfly species that are exclusively located on mountain peaks are particularly vulnerable to global heating as they must ascend higher as their environments become warmer but ultimately have no room left. In the southern part of Spain, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the Andalusian anomalous blue butterfly are among over forty percent of species endemic to Europe (exclusive to Europe) at risk of extinction.
In the Mediterranean region, types such as the critically endangered Karpathos grayling butterfly are endangered by intense drought and wildfires.
At the same time, in the Far North, climate change is causing the forest boundary to move north by many meters each year, with scrub encroaching on wetlands and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean Arctic deer can not anymore cross the frozen water to graze northern grasslands and keep them open. 8 butterfly varieties are facing extinction in this area, including Freyja’s fritillary and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.
“The biggest environment for all these pollinators is grassland rich in flowers and that is disappearing very fast throughout European nations because of all these elements,” stated a lead coordinator for the butterfly assessment. “The positive thing is that so many people are aware now and there’s a lot more consciousness. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all member countries have to reverse the decline in pollinating insects by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are property owners who are interested. It is hoped they can get the motivations that will assist them on their way.”
As per Martin Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of steps for pollinating species which will not lower food production – and could improve it – such as farmers creating margins rich in flowers around their cultivated areas.
the EU’s environment commissioner, characterized the conservation status of wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators as “critical”.
“Urgent and collective action is necessary to confront this risk. Along with member countries, the European Commission has put in place an Europe-wide tracking system for pollinating insects based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will help to track our advancement. Now, we need to prioritize application and collaboration with member states to protect our pollinating insects,” she said.
The issuance of the assessments on bees and butterflies is subsequent to the pioneering Europe-wide evaluation of hoverflies, a further vital pollinator group. Released in twenty-twenty-two, it showed that 37% of all hoverfly types in Europe were facing extinction.
