The count of non-managed bee types in the European continent facing dying out has increased twofold during the previous ten-year period, whereas the number of at-risk butterfly species has close to doubled.
This critical situation for crucial pollinating species was revealed by scientific studies for the red list of threatened species, which determined that at least over 170 bee species out of over 1900 were facing extinction in Europe.
The number of butterfly species threatened with extinction in the European continent has increased from 37 to over sixty since the earlier research, performed a decade and a half ago. One species, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
Apart from their visual charm and cultural value, pollinators like bees along with butterflies are essential supports for our health, our food supplies and our economic systems – sustaining the fruits, veggies and seeds that feed us,” said the IUCN director general. “The most recent assessments of the European red list reveal significant difficulties, with risks increasing for butterfly species and vital non-managed bee species.”
The factors of the quick recent decreases are the persistent destruction or damage of living environments caused by farming intensification and abandoned land, draining of wetlands, livestock overgrazing, and the utilization of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoid pesticides. The fragmentation of habitat friendly to pollinators significantly raises the threat of disappearances in specific areas.
Global warming is also revealed to be a significant danger: 52% of all threatened butterfly types in European nations are threatened by the climate crisis – about twice as many as a decade ago.
Up to 90% of blooming plants in European nations require animal pollination, as stated by Dr Denis Michez. “Regrettably, non-managed bee populations are in sharp decrease and cannot readily be substituted by domesticated hives,” he said. “If native bees die out, many wild plants might be in danger as well – of which bloom-filled grasslands and lovely orchid types are just a few examples.”
Fifteen types of bumblebees, which have an essential part in pollinating crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 types of cellophane bee types, famous for pollinating trees such as willows along with red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee type found only in the mainland and the sole species of this genus in the European continent, is now evaluated as severely threatened – the scientific classification most akin to extinction in the wild.
Butterflies that are exclusively located on high-altitude areas are especially at risk to climate change as they have to climb upward as their environments become warmer but eventually exhaust available space. In Spain’s southern region, the grayling of Nevada and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among more than 40% of European endemics (exclusive to Europe) threatened with extinction.
In the Mediterranean region, species such as the critically endangered Karpathos grayling butterfly are imperilled by severe dry conditions and fires.
Meanwhile, in the Arctic region, global warming is causing the timberline to shift northward by tens of metres each year, with bushes encroaching on bog and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean caribou can no more cross the frozen water to browse Arctic meadows and maintain them clear. 8 butterfly varieties are facing extinction in this area, including the fritillary of Freyja and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.
“The biggest living space for all these pollinating species is bloom-filled grassy areas and that is declining quickly throughout Europe because of all these reasons,” said Martin Warren. “The good news is that so many individuals are concerned now and there’s a lot more awareness. Under the European Union nature restoration law, all member states have to turn around the decrease in pollinating species by 2030, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are landowners who are engaged. We hope they can obtain the incentives that will assist them on their way.”
As per Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of action for pollinators which will not decrease agricultural output – and may enhance it – such as growers developing bloom-filled edges around their cultivated areas.
EU commissioner for environment, characterized the protection status of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “critical”.
“Urgent and collective action is necessary to confront this danger. Together with member countries, the European Commission has implemented an European Union-wide tracking system for pollinators based on the EU nature restoration law, which will assist in monitoring our advancement. Now, we need to focus on application and partnership with participating nations to preserve our pollinating species,” she said.
The issuance of the assessments on bees and butterflies comes after the initial European-wide study on hoverflies, a further essential pollinating insect category. Published in 2022, it showed that over one-third of all hoverfly types in the European continent were at risk of extinction.
