The count of non-managed bee species in European nations confronting dying out has increased twofold in the last ten years, while the count of threatened butterfly has nearly doubled.
This dire scenario for essential pollinators was unveiled by scientific assessments for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list, which determined that at least over 170 bee types out of 1,928 were at risk of extinction in the European continent.
The total of butterflies threatened with extinction in the European continent has risen from 37 to over sixty since the earlier research, conducted 14 years ago. One type, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
In addition to their visual charm and cultural significance, pollinators like bees along with butterflies are crucial elements for our health, our food systems and our financial structures – maintaining the fruits, vegetables and seeds that nourish us,” commented the IUCN’s director general. “The newest assessments of the European red list reveal major obstacles, with dangers mounting for butterfly species and essential native bee varieties.”
The reasons of the swift recent drops are the persistent destruction or damage of living environments caused by agricultural intensification and deserted farmland, draining wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoids. The breaking up of habitat friendly to pollinators greatly increases the threat of local extinctions.
Climate change is also demonstrated to be a primary risk: Fifty-two percent of all endangered butterfly types in Europe are endangered by the climate emergency – approximately double the number as a decade ago.
Nearly 90% of plants that flower in Europe rely on insect pollination, as stated by the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Sadly, wild bee colonies are in sharp decrease and cannot be easily replaced by managed colonies,” he said. “If native bees die out, many non-cultivated plants might be in danger as well – of which bloom-filled grasslands and beautiful orchid species are just a few examples.”
15 varieties of bumblebees, which play a crucial role in aiding the pollination of crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bee types, recognized for aiding tree pollination such as willows along with red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee unique to the continent and the sole species of this genus group in the European continent, is now classified as critically endangered – the research category closest to disappearance in the wild.
Butterflies that are solely present on high-altitude areas are highly susceptible to global warming as they need to move uphill as their habitats become warmer but ultimately run out of space. In southern Spain, the Nevada grayling and the Andalusian anomalous blue butterfly are among more than 40% of European endemics (only found in Europe) facing extinction.
In the Mediterranean region, species such as the severely threatened grayling of Karpathos are threatened by intense dry conditions and fires.
In the meantime, in the Far North, global warming is resulting in the tree line to shift northward by many meters each year, with bushes encroaching on marsh and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean caribou can no more cross the frozen water to graze Arctic grasslands and keep them open. 8 butterfly varieties are facing extinction in this region, including the fritillary of Freyja and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.
“The biggest environment for all these pollinators is grassland rich in flowers and that is vanishing rapidly throughout European nations because of all these elements,” stated one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The positive thing is that so many citizens are aware now and there’s a lot more consciousness. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all member countries have to turn around the drop in pollinating species by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are land holders who are involved. Let’s hope they can obtain the incentives that will support them on their way.”
As per Warren, there is “readily achievable actions” in terms of action for pollinating insects which will not lower agricultural output – and might boost it – such as growers developing margins rich in flowers around their farmland.
the EU’s environment commissioner, portrayed the preservation condition of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “critical”.
“Immediate and joint measures is needed to confront this threat. Together with member states, the Commission of the European Union has implemented an Europe-wide monitoring system for pollinators based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will assist in monitoring our advancement. Now, we need to focus on application and collaboration with member countries to protect our pollinators,” she said.
The release of the assessments on bees and butterflies is subsequent to the first European-wide assessment of hoverflies, a further vital pollinator group. Published in 2022, it disclosed that 37% of all hoverfly species in Europe were threatened with extinction.
