The count of native bee types in the European continent experiencing extinction has over doubled over the past decade, while the number of threatened butterfly types has close to doubled.
This pressing issue for essential pollinating insects was revealed by research studies for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list, which established that at least 172 bee varieties out of nearly two thousand were facing extinction in the European continent.
The count of butterfly types threatened with extinction in the European continent has risen from 37 to sixty-five since the previous assessment, carried out 14 years ago. One species, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
In addition to their aesthetic appeal and cultural importance, pollinators like bees and butterflies are essential supports for our well-being, our food supplies and our economic systems – supporting the fruits, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” commented Grethel Aguilar. “The most recent assessments of the European red list reveal major obstacles, with dangers increasing for butterfly types and vital wild bee varieties.”
The causes of the swift recent drops are the ongoing harm or degradation of natural habitats caused by intensive agriculture and land abandonment, wetland drainage, excessive grazing by animals, and the application of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoids. The fragmentation of habitat friendly to pollinators significantly raises the danger of local extinctions.
Global heating is also demonstrated to be a primary risk: Fifty-two percent of all endangered butterfly species in European nations are imperilled by the climate crisis – approximately twice as many as a previous decade.
Up to 90% of plants that flower in Europe depend on insect pollination, as stated by the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Sadly, native bee groups are in drastic decline and cannot readily be substituted by domesticated hives,” he said. “If wild bees vanish, many native plants might be in danger as well – of which meadows rich in flowers and lovely orchid types are just a couple of instances.”
15 varieties of bumblebee types, which play a crucial role in aiding the pollination of crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 types of cellophane bees, known for pollinating trees such as willows and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species unique to the mainland and the sole species of this genus group in the European continent, is now evaluated as severely threatened – the scientific category closest to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterfly types that are solely present on mountain tops are particularly vulnerable to global warming as they have to climb upward as their environments become hotter but ultimately run out of space. In Spain’s southern region, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among over forty percent of species endemic to Europe (only found in Europe) facing extinction.
In the Mediterranean, types such as the severely threatened grayling of Karpathos are endangered by extreme drought and wildfires.
At the same time, in the Arctic Circle, climate change is resulting in the tree line to move north by many meters each year, with underbrush taking over marsh and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean reindeer can not anymore cross the frozen water to graze Arctic meadows and maintain them clear. Eight types of butterflies are facing extinction in this zone, including Freyja’s fritillary and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The biggest environment for all these pollinating species is flower-rich grassland and that is declining quickly in the European continent because of all these factors,” remarked one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The encouraging aspect is that so many people care now and there’s a lot more awareness. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all member states have to turn around the decline in pollinating insects by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to initiate measures. There are landowners who are engaged. Let’s hope they can get the encouragements that will assist them on their way.”
As stated by Martin Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of steps for pollinating insects which will not lower food production – and may enhance it – such as growers developing flower-rich margins around their cultivated areas.
Jessika Roswall, portrayed the protection status of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “severe”.
“Prompt and unified steps is necessary to address this threat. In collaboration with participating nations, the Commission of the European Union has established an EU-wide tracking system for pollinating species based on the EU nature restoration law, which will assist in monitoring our development. Now, we need to prioritize implementation and cooperation with participating nations to preserve our pollinating species,” she said.
The issuance of the bee and butterfly assessments is subsequent to the pioneering European-wide study on hoverflies, a further essential pollinating insect category. Published in 2022, it revealed that 37% of all hoverfly varieties in the European continent were at risk of extinction.
