The total of wild bee species in European nations experiencing disappearance has over doubled in the last ten years, and the count of endangered butterfly species has almost doubled.
This critical situation for essential pollinating species was revealed by scientific assessments for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list, which determined that at least 172 bee varieties out of nearly two thousand were at risk of extinction in Europe.
The total of butterflies at risk of extinction in the European continent has increased from 37 to over sixty since the earlier research, conducted over a decade past. One species, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been classified as extinct.
“Beyond their visual charm and cultural significance, pollinators like bees and butterfly species are lifelines for our health, our food systems and our economic systems – supporting the fruits, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” said Grethel Aguilar. “The latest European red list assessments reveal significant difficulties, with risks increasing for butterfly types and crucial non-managed bee species.”
The causes of the quick recent decreases are the continuing destruction or damage of living environments caused by intensive agriculture and deserted farmland, draining of wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the use of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid pesticides. The division of pollinator-friendly habitat greatly increases the danger of extinctions at local level.
Global heating is also shown to be a primary risk: 52% of all threatened butterfly types in the European continent are imperilled by the climate crisis – roughly twofold the amount as a ten years ago.
Nearly ninety percent of flowering plants in Europe rely on insect pollination, as per Dr Denis Michez. “Sadly, wild bee populations are in severe drop and cannot be easily replaced by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If non-managed bees disappear, many wild plants might be in danger as well – of which meadows rich in flowers and beautiful orchid species are just a couple of instances.”
Fifteen species of bumblebee types, which play a crucial role in pollinating crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bees, recognized for aiding tree pollination such as willows along with red maples, are now categorized as at-risk. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee unique to the mainland and the sole species of this biological genus in European nations, is now evaluated as critically endangered – the scientific classification closest to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterflies that are exclusively located on high-altitude areas are especially at risk to global warming as they need to move uphill as their living spaces become more heated but in the end exhaust available space. In southern Spain, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among above 40 percent of European endemics (exclusive to Europe) at risk of extinction.
In the Mediterranean region, varieties such as the severely threatened grayling of Karpathos are threatened by severe dry conditions and fires.
In the meantime, in the Far North, climate change is leading to the tree line to shift northward by many meters each year, with scrub encroaching on bog and tundra. Hotter climates also mean reindeer can no longer cross the ice sheets to graze northern grasslands and keep them open. Eight butterfly species are at risk of extinction in this region, including Freyja’s fritillary butterfly and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.
“The greatest living space for all these pollinating species is bloom-filled grassy areas and that is disappearing very fast in Europe because of all these reasons,” remarked one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The positive thing is that so many citizens are concerned now and there’s a lot more consciousness. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all member countries have to turn around the decline in pollinating insects by the year 2030, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are land holders who are involved. It is hoped they can obtain the incentives that will support them on their way.”
According to Warren, there is “easy opportunities” in terms of measures for pollinating insects which will not lower agricultural output – and may enhance it – such as farmers establishing bloom-filled edges around their fields.
EU commissioner for environment, portrayed the conservation status of native bees, butterflies and additional pollinators as “dire”.
“Immediate and joint measures is needed to tackle this threat. Together with member countries, the EU Commission has implemented an European Union-wide tracking system for pollinating insects based on the EU nature restoration law, which will assist in monitoring our development. Now, we need to prioritize execution and partnership with member states to preserve our pollinators,” she said.
The release of the bee and butterfly assessments is subsequent to the initial EU-wide evaluation of hoverflies, another vital pollinator group. Published in 2022, it disclosed that 37% of all hoverfly varieties in Europe were facing extinction.
