The total of non-managed bee types in Europe experiencing extinction has increased twofold during the previous ten-year period, and the number of at-risk butterfly types has close to doubled.
This pressing issue for vital pollinating species was unveiled by scientific studies for the IUCN red list, which established that at least one hundred seventy-two bee varieties out of 1,928 were threatened with extinction in the European continent.
The number of butterfly species threatened with extinction in Europe has risen from thirty-seven to sixty-five since the previous assessment, conducted 14 years ago. One species, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
Apart from their beauty and cultural importance, pollinating species like bees and butterflies are essential supports for our physical condition, our food supplies and our economic systems – maintaining the produce, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” stated the IUCN director general. “The latest assessments of the European red list reveal significant difficulties, with risks increasing for butterflies and essential native bee types.”
The factors of the quick recent decreases are the persistent damage or destruction of habitats caused by intensive agriculture and land abandonment, wetland drainage, excessive grazing by animals, and the utilization of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoid pesticides. The division of environments suitable for pollinators greatly increases the danger of extinctions at local level.
Global warming is also revealed to be a major threat: 52% of all at-risk butterflies in the European continent are threatened by the climate change crisis – approximately double the number as a decade ago.
Nearly ninety percent of blooming plants in Europe require animal pollination, according to the wild bee assessment’s lead coordinator. “Unfortunately, non-managed bee colonies are in sharp decrease and are not easily replaceable by domesticated hives,” he said. “If wild bees disappear, many non-cultivated plants might be in danger as well – of which bloom-filled grasslands and beautiful orchid species are just a couple of instances.”
Fifteen types of bumblebees, which have an essential part in pollinating crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bees, known for fertilizing trees such as willow trees and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee unique to the mainland and the sole species of this biological genus in European nations, is now classified as critically at risk – the scientific classification most akin to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterfly types that are exclusively located on high-altitude areas are highly susceptible to global heating as they have to climb upward as their environments become more heated but eventually run out of space. In the southern part of Spain, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the Andalusian anomalous blue are among more than 40% of types unique to Europe (only found in Europe) facing extinction.
In the Mediterranean, types such as the severely threatened Karpathos grayling butterfly are threatened by intense dry conditions and fires.
At the same time, in the Far North, global warming is leading to the forest boundary to move north by dozens of meters each year, with underbrush invading wetlands and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean reindeer can no more cross the ice sheets to graze Arctic grasslands and prevent them from overgrowing. Eight types of butterflies are threatened with extinction in this region, including Freyja’s fritillary butterfly and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The biggest environment for all these pollinating insects is flower-rich grassland and that is disappearing very fast in Europe because of all these factors,” stated Martin Warren. “The good news is that so many citizens are concerned now and there’s a lot more understanding. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all member states have to reverse the decline in pollinating species by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are landowners who are interested. We hope they can get the incentives that will support them on their way.”
As stated by the coordinator, there is “easy opportunities” in terms of steps for pollinating insects which will not lower agricultural output – and might boost it – such as farmers developing margins rich in flowers around their farmland.
the EU’s environment commissioner, described the preservation condition of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “dire”.
“Urgent and collective action is required to confront this threat. Along with member states, the EU Commission has established an EU-wide monitoring system for pollinators based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will assist in monitoring our advancement. Now, we need to prioritize execution and cooperation with member states to protect our pollinating insects,” she said.
The release of the bee and butterfly assessments comes after the initial European-wide study on hoverflies, another essential pollinator group. Published in 2022, it disclosed that over one-third of all hoverfly types in the European continent were facing extinction.
