The number of native bee types in the European continent confronting extinction has over doubled in the last ten years, whereas the count of endangered butterfly has close to doubled.
This dire scenario for crucial pollinating species was disclosed by research studies for the IUCN red list, which determined that at least one hundred seventy-two bee species out of 1,928 were threatened with extinction in European nations.
The total of butterfly species facing extinction in European nations has increased from thirty-seven to sixty-five since the earlier research, performed a decade and a half ago. A single species, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
Apart from their visual charm and cultural significance, pollinating insects like bees and butterflies are lifelines for our health, our food chains and our financial structures – supporting the produce, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” commented the IUCN director general. “The newest assessments of the European red list reveal serious challenges, with dangers growing for butterflies and essential wild bee varieties.”
The factors of the quick recent decreases are the persistent harm or degradation of living environments caused by intensive agriculture and abandoned land, wetland drainage, overgrazing by livestock, and the application of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid pesticides. The breaking up of habitat friendly to pollinators substantially boosts the threat of extinctions at local level.
Global warming is also demonstrated to be a major threat: Fifty-two percent of all at-risk butterfly species in Europe are endangered by the climate emergency – about twice as many as a decade ago.
As many as nine out of ten of plants that flower in Europe depend on insect pollination, as per the wild bee assessment’s lead coordinator. “Unfortunately, native bee colonies are in severe drop and are not easily replaceable by managed colonies,” he said. “If wild bees vanish, many wild plants might be threatened too – of which meadows rich in flowers and attractive orchid varieties are just a handful of illustrations.”
Fifteen types of bumblebees, which play a crucial role in pollinating crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 types of cellophane bees, recognized for pollinating trees such as willows and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee type exclusive to the European continent and the sole species of this genus group in Europe, is now assessed as critically at risk – the research category closest to extinction in the wild.
Butterflies that are only found on high-altitude areas are highly susceptible to global warming as they need to move uphill as their environments become hotter but ultimately exhaust available space. In the southern part of Spain, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the Andalusian anomalous blue butterfly are among more than 40% of European endemics (solely present in Europe) at risk of extinction.
In the Mediterranean, species such as the highly at-risk Karpathos grayling are imperilled by extreme dry conditions and fires.
At the same time, in the Far North, climate change is resulting in the forest boundary to shift northward by tens of metres each year, with scrub encroaching on marsh and tundra. Hotter climates also mean Arctic deer can no more cross the ice sheets to feed on Arctic meadows and maintain them clear. Eight butterfly species are at risk of extinction in this region, including Freyja’s fritillary and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The greatest habitat for all these pollinating species is flower-rich grassland and that is declining quickly across Europe because of all these factors,” remarked Martin Warren. “The positive thing is that so many citizens care now and there’s a lot more awareness. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all member countries have to reverse the decrease in pollinating insects by the year 2030, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are land holders who are engaged. It is hoped they can receive the motivations that will assist them on their way.”
As stated by Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of steps for pollinating species which will not decrease agricultural output – and may enhance it – such as agricultural producers establishing flower-rich margins around their fields.
the EU’s environment commissioner, described the protection status of native bees, butterflies and additional pollinators as “dire”.
“Prompt and unified steps is required to confront this threat. In collaboration with participating nations, the EU Commission has put in place an EU-wide monitoring system for pollinating species based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will assist in monitoring our advancement. Now, we need to focus on implementation and partnership with participating nations to preserve our pollinators,” she said.
The release of the assessments on bees and butterflies comes after the initial EU-wide evaluation of hoverflies, another vital pollinating insect category. Published in 2022, it disclosed that over one-third of all hoverfly species in the European continent were at risk of extinction.
