The count of native bee species in the European continent experiencing extinction has over doubled during the previous ten-year period, while the number of at-risk butterfly has close to doubled.
This pressing issue for essential pollinating species was revealed by scientific studies for the IUCN red list, which established that at least 172 bee varieties out of nearly two thousand were threatened with extinction in Europe.
The count of butterflies facing extinction in the European continent has risen from 37 to over sixty since the last study, carried out 14 years ago. A single species, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been confirmed extinct.
“Beyond their aesthetic appeal and cultural significance, pollinating insects like bees along with butterflies are lifelines for our physical condition, our food systems and our economies – supporting the fruits, vegetables and seeds that nourish us,” commented the IUCN director general. “The latest assessments of the European red list reveal serious challenges, with risks growing for butterflies and vital non-managed bee varieties.”
The factors of the quick recent decreases are the persistent damage or destruction of living environments caused by intensive agriculture and land abandonment, wetland drainage, livestock overgrazing, and the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid chemicals. The fragmentation of pollinator-friendly habitat substantially boosts the threat of local extinctions.
Global warming is also revealed to be a significant danger: Over half of all at-risk butterflies in Europe are threatened by the climate emergency – about twofold the amount as a decade ago.
Up to nine out of ten of plants that flower in the European continent require pollination by animals, as per the wild bee assessment’s lead coordinator. “Unfortunately, wild bee colonies are in severe drop and are not easily replaceable by managed colonies,” he said. “If wild bees die out, many non-cultivated plants might be at risk too – of which flower-rich meadows and attractive orchid varieties are just a few examples.”
Fifteen species of bumblebees, which have an essential part in fertilizing legumes like peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bee species, recognized for fertilizing trees such as willows and red maples, are now listed as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species found only in the continent and the sole species of this genus group in the European continent, is now evaluated as critically endangered – the scientific category most akin to extinction in the wild.
Butterfly species that are solely present on mountain peaks are highly susceptible to global heating as they must ascend higher as their environments become warmer but ultimately exhaust available space. In Spain’s southern region, the Nevada grayling and the Andalusian anomalous blue butterfly are among above 40 percent of European endemics (solely present in Europe) at risk of extinction.
In the Mediterranean area, species such as the highly at-risk Karpathos grayling are endangered by intense wildfires and drought.
In the meantime, in the Arctic region, global warming is causing the forest boundary to move north by dozens of meters each year, with scrub invading marsh and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean caribou can no more cross the frozen water to browse Arctic meadows and keep them open. Eight butterfly species are at risk of extinction in this zone, including Freyja’s fritillary butterfly and the Arctic ringlet.
“The largest environment for all these pollinating species is flower-rich grassland and that is disappearing very fast throughout Europe because of all these reasons,” stated a lead coordinator for the butterfly assessment. “The encouraging aspect is that so many people care now and there’s a lot more consciousness. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all participating nations have to turn around the decrease in pollinators by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are property owners who are engaged. It is hoped they can receive the encouragements that will assist them on their way.”
As stated by Warren, there is “easy opportunities” in terms of measures for pollinating insects which will not decrease food production – and might boost it – such as farmers establishing flower-rich margins around their fields.
Jessika Roswall, described the protection status of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “severe”.
“Prompt and unified steps is necessary to tackle this threat. Together with participating nations, the EU Commission has implemented an EU-wide monitoring system for pollinating species based on the EU nature restoration law, which will assist in monitoring our advancement. Now, we need to prioritize implementation and collaboration with participating nations to safeguard our pollinating species,” she said.
The publication of the bee and butterfly assessments follows the initial European-wide evaluation of hoverflies, a further crucial group of pollinators. Released in 2022, it disclosed that thirty-seven percent of all hoverfly varieties in Europe were at risk of extinction.
