The number of native bee species in the European continent confronting disappearance has increased twofold over the past decade, whereas the count of endangered butterfly species has almost doubled.
This pressing issue for essential pollinating insects was revealed by scientific studies for the red list of threatened species, which established that at least one hundred seventy-two bee varieties out of 1,928 were at risk of extinction in Europe.
The count of butterfly species threatened with extinction in European nations has grown from 37 to sixty-five since the previous assessment, conducted over a decade past. One species, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been confirmed extinct.
Apart from their visual charm and cultural importance, pollinating species like bees along with butterflies are lifelines for our health, our food supplies and our economic systems – maintaining the fruits, vegetables and seeds that nourish us,” said Grethel Aguilar. “The latest assessments of the European red list reveal significant difficulties, with dangers growing for butterfly types and crucial wild bee species.”
The factors of the rapid recent declines are the persistent damage or destruction of habitats caused by farming intensification and abandoned land, draining wetlands, excessive grazing by animals, and the use of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid chemicals. The fragmentation of pollinator-friendly habitat substantially boosts the risk of disappearances in specific areas.
Global heating is also shown to be a major threat: 52% of all threatened butterfly types in European nations are threatened by the climate change crisis – about twofold the amount as a ten years ago.
Nearly ninety percent of flowering plants in the European continent require pollination by animals, as per the wild bee assessment’s lead coordinator. “Regrettably, non-managed bee colonies are in drastic decline and are not easily replaceable by managed colonies,” he said. “If wild bees vanish, many non-cultivated plants might be at risk too – of which flower-rich meadows and attractive orchid varieties are just a handful of illustrations.”
15 varieties of bumblebees, which play a crucial role in fertilizing peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 types of cellophane bees, known for aiding tree pollination such as willows along with red maples, are now listed as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee type unique to the European continent and the sole species of this biological genus in the European continent, is now assessed as critically at risk – the research category closest to dying out in natural habitats.
Butterfly types that are solely present on mountain peaks are especially at risk to climate change as they have to climb upward as their living spaces become more heated but eventually exhaust available space. In southern Spain, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among over forty percent of species endemic to Europe (solely present in Europe) facing extinction.
In the Mediterranean, species such as the highly at-risk Karpathos grayling are endangered by intense dry conditions and fires.
Meanwhile, in the Arctic Circle, climate change is causing the timberline to advance northwards by tens of metres each year, with bushes invading wetlands and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean caribou can no longer cross the ice sheets to browse Arctic meadows and keep them open. Eight types of butterflies are threatened with extinction in this zone, including the fritillary of Freyja and the Arctic ringlet.
“The greatest habitat for all these pollinating species is flower-rich grassland and that is vanishing rapidly in Europe because of all these factors,” said 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 understanding. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all member states have to turn around the decline in pollinating species by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are landowners who are interested. Let’s hope they can obtain the incentives that will support them on their way.”
As per Martin Warren, there is “easy opportunities” in terms of steps for pollinating species which won’t reduce food production – and might boost it – such as farmers developing bloom-filled edges around their fields.
Jessika Roswall, portrayed the protection status of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “dire”.
“Urgent and collective action is required to confront this risk. Together with member states, the EU Commission has put in place an EU-wide monitoring system for pollinating species based on the European Union nature restoration legislation, which will help to track our advancement. Now, we need to focus on implementation and collaboration with member states to preserve our pollinators,” she said.
The issuance of the evaluations of bees along with butterflies follows the first Europe-wide assessment of hoverflies, an additional vital pollinator group. Issued in twenty-twenty-two, it showed that 37% of all hoverfly types in the European continent were threatened with extinction.
