The number of wild bee types in Europe experiencing disappearance has more than doubled during the previous ten-year period, and the total of threatened butterfly types has nearly doubled.
This critical situation for crucial pollinating insects was disclosed by research studies for the red list of threatened species, which determined that at least over 170 bee varieties out of over 1900 were at risk of extinction in Europe.
The total of butterflies at risk of extinction in the European continent has risen from over thirty-five to sixty-five since the earlier research, performed a decade and a half ago. One type, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been confirmed extinct.
Apart from their visual charm and cultural value, pollinators like bees along with butterflies are essential supports for our physical condition, our food supplies and our economies – supporting the produce, vegetables and seeds that sustain us,” commented the IUCN director general. “The most recent European red list evaluations reveal major obstacles, with dangers mounting for butterfly types and vital wild bee varieties.”
The factors of the swift recent drops are the ongoing damage or destruction of living environments caused by intensive agriculture and abandoned land, draining of wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the use of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid chemicals. The division of habitat friendly to pollinators greatly increases the threat of local extinctions.
Global warming is also shown to be a primary risk: 52% of all threatened butterflies in the European continent are threatened by the climate crisis – about double the number as a decade ago.
Nearly nine out of ten of flowering plants in European nations rely on animal pollination, according to the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Regrettably, native bee colonies are in sharp decrease and are not easily replaceable by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If native bees die out, many wild plants might be threatened too – of which flower-rich meadows and attractive orchid varieties are just a few examples.”
15 varieties of bumblebee types, which have an essential part in pollinating peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bees, famous for aiding tree pollination such as willow trees and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species unique to the mainland and the only species of this genus group in Europe, is now assessed as critically at risk – the research category most akin to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterfly types that are only found on high-altitude areas are especially at risk to climate change as they need to move uphill as their living spaces become hotter but eventually have no room left. In southern Spain, the grayling of Nevada and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among over forty percent of types unique to Europe (exclusive to Europe) threatened with extinction.
In the Mediterranean region, types such as the severely threatened Karpathos grayling butterfly are threatened by extreme drought and wildfires.
In the meantime, in the Far North, global heating is leading to the timberline to shift northward by tens of metres each year, with underbrush taking over marsh and tundra. Hotter climates also mean Arctic deer can no longer cross the frozen water to graze Arctic grasslands and maintain them clear. Eight butterfly species are facing extinction in this area, including the fritillary of Freyja and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The biggest living space for all these pollinating insects is grassland rich in flowers and that is disappearing very fast throughout European nations because of all these reasons,” stated Martin Warren. “The encouraging aspect is that so many citizens care now and there’s a lot more awareness. Under the European Union nature restoration law, all participating nations have to halt the drop in pollinators by 2030, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are landowners who are involved. Let’s hope they can receive the motivations that will support them on their way.”
As per Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of measures for pollinating insects which won’t reduce food production – and might boost it – such as growers developing flower-rich margins around their farmland.
Jessika Roswall, characterized the protection status of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “critical”.
“Urgent and collective action is required to tackle this danger. In collaboration with member states, the EU Commission has established an EU-wide tracking system for pollinating species based on the European Union nature restoration legislation, which will aid in following our progress. Now, we need to focus on application and collaboration with member countries to preserve our pollinating species,” she said.
The issuance of the bee and butterfly assessments is subsequent to the pioneering EU-wide assessment of hoverflies, another crucial group of pollinators. Published in 2022, it revealed that thirty-seven percent of all hoverfly varieties in Europe were threatened with extinction.
