The total of wild bee species in the European continent experiencing extinction has increased twofold during the previous ten-year period, while the count of endangered butterfly species has nearly doubled.
This dire scenario for essential pollinating insects was revealed by scientific assessments for the red list of threatened species, which found that at least one hundred seventy-two bee types out of 1,928 were threatened with extinction in Europe.
The count of butterfly types at risk of extinction in the European continent has increased from over thirty-five to 65 since the previous assessment, conducted 14 years ago. One species, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
“Beyond their visual charm and cultural value, pollinating species like bees along with butterflies are lifelines for our physical condition, our food chains and our economies – supporting the produce, vegetables and seeds that nourish us,” stated the IUCN’s director general. “The latest European red list evaluations reveal significant difficulties, with dangers mounting for butterfly species and essential non-managed bee species.”
The factors of the rapid recent declines are the continuing damage or destruction of natural habitats caused by farming intensification and abandoned land, draining wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the utilization of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoid pesticides. The breaking up of pollinator-friendly habitat significantly raises the risk of local extinctions.
Climate change is also revealed to be a primary risk: Fifty-two percent of all endangered butterflies in Europe are endangered by the climate change crisis – roughly twofold the amount as a ten years ago.
Nearly ninety percent of plants that flower in European nations rely on insect pollination, according to the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Unfortunately, native bee colonies are in severe drop and cannot be easily replaced by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If non-managed bees die out, many non-cultivated plants might be at risk too – of which bloom-filled grasslands and beautiful orchid species are just a handful of illustrations.”
Fifteen types of bumblebee species, which perform a vital function in pollinating legumes like peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 types of cellophane bees, known for pollinating trees such as willow trees and red maples, are now categorized as at-risk. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee found only in the European continent and the single type of this biological genus in European nations, is now assessed as critically at risk – the scientific classification closest to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterfly types that are only found on mountain tops are particularly vulnerable to global heating as they have to climb upward as their living spaces become warmer but in the end run out of space. In the southern part of Spain, the grayling of Nevada and the Andalusian anomalous blue butterfly are among above 40 percent of European endemics (only found in Europe) facing extinction.
In the Mediterranean, types such as the critically endangered Karpathos grayling are threatened by extreme drought and wildfires.
Meanwhile, in the Far North, climate change is causing the timberline to shift northward by many meters each year, with scrub invading bog and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean Arctic deer can not anymore cross the ice to feed on Arctic meadows and maintain them clear. Eight butterfly species are threatened with extinction in this region, including Freyja’s fritillary and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.
“The biggest habitat for all these pollinators is grassland rich in flowers and that is declining quickly throughout European nations because of all these factors,” stated a lead coordinator for the butterfly assessment. “The positive thing is that so many people care now and there’s a lot more awareness. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all participating nations have to turn around the drop in pollinating species by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are land holders who are involved. Let’s hope they can receive the motivations that will support them on their way.”
According to Martin Warren, there is “readily achievable actions” in terms of measures for pollinating insects which won’t reduce food production – and might boost it – such as growers creating flower-rich margins around their fields.
Jessika Roswall, portrayed the preservation condition of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “critical”.
“Prompt and unified steps is required to address this danger. Together with member countries, the Commission of the European Union has implemented an Europe-wide tracking system for pollinators based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will help to track our development. Now, we need to prioritize application and collaboration with member countries to safeguard our pollinating species,” she said.
The publication of the assessments on bees and butterflies is subsequent to the initial EU-wide evaluation of hoverflies, an additional vital pollinating insect category. Issued in 2022, it showed that thirty-seven percent of all hoverfly types in Europe were at risk of extinction.
