The total of non-managed bee varieties in the European continent facing dying out has increased twofold during the previous ten-year period, and the count of at-risk butterfly types has close to doubled.
This critical situation for crucial pollinating insects 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 over 1900 were facing extinction in Europe.
The number of butterfly species facing extinction in the European continent has grown from over thirty-five to over sixty since the last study, carried out over a decade past. One type, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
“Beyond their visual charm and cultural value, pollinating insects like bees and butterflies are crucial elements for our physical condition, our food chains and our economic systems – supporting the produce, vegetables and seeds that sustain us,” commented the IUCN’s director general. “The most recent European red list evaluations reveal significant difficulties, with threats growing for butterfly types and essential non-managed bee species.”
The factors of the rapid recent declines are the continuing damage or destruction of living environments caused by agricultural intensification and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, excessive grazing by animals, and the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid chemicals. The fragmentation of pollinator-friendly habitat greatly increases the danger of local extinctions.
Global warming is also shown to be a significant danger: Over half of all at-risk butterfly types in the European continent are imperilled by the climate emergency – approximately double the number as a ten years ago.
Nearly ninety percent of flowering plants in Europe rely on insect pollination, as stated by Dr Denis Michez. “Regrettably, wild bee populations are in sharp decrease and cannot readily be substituted by domesticated hives,” he said. “If wild bees vanish, many native plants might be at risk too – of which flower-rich meadows and beautiful orchid species are just a couple of instances.”
Fifteen species of bumblebee types, which play a crucial role in aiding the pollination of crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bees, recognized for fertilizing trees such as willows along with red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee found only in the European continent and the sole species of this genus in Europe, is now evaluated as critically at risk – the scientific classification nearest to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterfly types that are solely present on mountain peaks are particularly vulnerable to global heating as they have to climb upward as their habitats become warmer but ultimately have no room left. In southern Spain, the grayling of Nevada and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among more than 40% of European endemics (only found in Europe) facing extinction.
In the Mediterranean region, species such as the severely threatened Karpathos grayling butterfly are threatened by intense wildfires and drought.
In the meantime, in the Arctic region, global heating is causing the forest boundary to advance northwards by dozens of meters each year, with bushes invading wetlands and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean caribou can no more cross the ice sheets to browse Arctic meadows and keep them open. Eight types of butterflies are facing extinction in this area, including Freyja’s fritillary butterfly and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The biggest living space for all these pollinating insects is bloom-filled grassy areas and that is declining quickly across the European continent because of all these reasons,” stated Martin Warren. “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 member states have to reverse the drop in pollinating insects by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are land holders who are involved. It is hoped they can get the motivations that will support them on their way.”
According to Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of measures for pollinating species which won’t reduce agricultural output – and could improve it – such as growers creating bloom-filled edges around their farmland.
Jessika Roswall, characterized the conservation status of wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators as “severe”.
“Immediate and joint measures is required to confront this danger. In collaboration with member countries, the EU Commission has established an EU-wide observation system for pollinators based on the European Union nature restoration legislation, which will aid in following our progress. Now, we need to focus on execution and collaboration with participating nations to protect our pollinators,” she said.
The issuance of the evaluations of bees along with butterflies is subsequent to the pioneering Europe-wide assessment of hoverflies, a further crucial pollinator group. Issued in 2022, it disclosed that thirty-seven percent of all hoverfly types in the European continent were at risk of extinction.
