The count of non-managed bee varieties in the European continent experiencing extinction has over doubled during the previous ten-year period, and the total of threatened butterfly types has nearly doubled.
This pressing issue for essential pollinating insects was revealed by scientific studies for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list, which established that at least over 170 bee types out of 1,928 were threatened with extinction in Europe.
The count of butterflies threatened with extinction in Europe has increased from 37 to over sixty since the previous assessment, conducted a decade and a half ago. One type, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
Apart from their aesthetic appeal and cultural value, pollinating insects like bees and butterflies are essential supports for our well-being, our food systems and our economies – sustaining the produce, vegetables and seeds that nourish us,” said Grethel Aguilar. “The most recent European red list evaluations reveal major obstacles, with dangers increasing for butterfly species and vital non-managed bee varieties.”
The reasons of the quick recent decreases are the persistent damage or destruction of living environments caused by intensive agriculture and land abandonment, draining wetlands, excessive grazing by animals, and the use of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid chemicals. The fragmentation of pollinator-friendly habitat significantly raises the risk of extinctions at local level.
Global heating is also revealed to be a significant danger: Over half of all threatened butterflies in Europe are endangered by the climate crisis – approximately twofold the amount as a decade ago.
As many as ninety percent of blooming plants in Europe rely on pollination by animals, as stated by the wild bee assessment’s lead coordinator. “Regrettably, non-managed bee groups are in sharp decrease and cannot readily be substituted by domesticated hives,” he said. “If native bees die out, many non-cultivated plants might be threatened too – of which flower-rich meadows and lovely orchid types are just a handful of illustrations.”
15 varieties of bumblebee types, which play a crucial role in aiding the pollination of legumes like peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bee types, recognized for fertilizing trees such as willows along with red maples, are now categorized as at-risk. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee unique to the continent and the sole species of this genus group in European nations, is now classified as severely threatened – the scientific category closest to extinction in the wild.
Butterfly species that are exclusively located on high-altitude areas are highly susceptible to global heating 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) threatened with extinction.
In the Mediterranean, varieties such as the highly at-risk grayling of Karpathos are threatened by intense wildfires and drought.
At the same time, in the Far North, global warming is resulting in the timberline to move north by dozens of meters each year, with bushes taking over wetlands and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean Arctic deer can not anymore cross the ice sheets to feed on northern grasslands and prevent them from overgrowing. Eight butterfly species are threatened with extinction in this region, including the fritillary of Freyja and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.
“The greatest habitat for all these pollinating species is bloom-filled grassy areas and that is vanishing rapidly throughout Europe because of all these factors,” remarked one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The positive thing is that so many people care now and there’s a lot more understanding. Under the European Union nature restoration law, all participating nations have to halt the decline in pollinators by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are property owners who are engaged. Let’s hope they can receive the incentives that will support them on their way.”
According to Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of measures for pollinators which won’t reduce crop yields – and could improve it – such as growers establishing bloom-filled edges around their fields.
Jessika Roswall, characterized the preservation condition of wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators as “severe”.
“Urgent and collective action is needed to tackle this threat. In collaboration with member countries, the European Commission has put in place an Europe-wide observation system for pollinators based on the EU nature restoration law, which will aid in following our progress. Now, we need to concentrate on application and cooperation with participating nations to safeguard our pollinators,” she said.
The issuance of the bee and butterfly assessments follows the initial Europe-wide assessment of hoverflies, an additional essential pollinating insect category. Issued in 2022, it showed that over one-third of all hoverfly varieties in Europe were at risk of extinction.
