Concerning Increase in Endangered Native Bee Varieties Throughout Europe

The count of native bee species in Europe facing dying out has increased twofold over the past decade, whereas the count of at-risk butterfly species has close to doubled.

This pressing issue for essential pollinating insects was unveiled by scientific studies for the IUCN red list, which established that at least one hundred seventy-two bee types out of 1,928 were at risk of extinction in Europe.

The number of butterflies threatened with extinction in the European continent has grown from 37 to over sixty since the previous assessment, carried out over a decade past. A single species, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.

“Beyond their beauty and cultural importance, pollinators like bees along with butterflies are lifelines for our physical condition, our food chains and our financial structures – maintaining the produce, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” commented the IUCN director general. “The latest assessments of the European red list reveal major obstacles, with threats increasing for butterfly types and vital wild bee types.”

The reasons of the quick recent decreases are the continuing destruction or damage of natural habitats caused by farming intensification and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the use of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoid chemicals. The breaking up of pollinator-friendly habitat significantly raises the danger of extinctions at local level.

Climate change is also revealed to be a major threat: 52% of all threatened butterfly types in the European continent are threatened by the climate change crisis – roughly twice as many as a ten years ago.

Nearly ninety percent of plants that flower in the European continent require pollination by animals, as per 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 die out, many non-cultivated plants might be threatened too – of which bloom-filled grasslands and lovely orchid types are just a couple of instances.”

Fifteen types of bumblebee types, which perform a vital function in aiding the pollination of crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bee types, known for aiding tree pollination such as willows and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee type exclusive to the mainland and the sole species of this genus in Europe, is now evaluated as severely threatened – the research category closest to extinction in the wild.

Butterfly species that are only found on mountain peaks are particularly vulnerable to climate change as they must ascend higher as their environments become warmer but eventually run out of space. In Spain’s southern region, the Nevada grayling and the Andalusian anomalous blue are among over forty percent of types unique to Europe (solely present in Europe) at risk of extinction.

In the Mediterranean area, species such as the critically endangered Karpathos grayling butterfly are endangered by intense dry conditions and fires.

In the meantime, in the Arctic region, global heating is causing the timberline to advance northwards by many meters each year, with bushes invading bog and tundra. Hotter climates also mean reindeer can no more cross the frozen water to graze northern grasslands and maintain them clear. Eight types of butterflies are threatened with extinction in this region, including the fritillary of Freyja and the ringlet of the Arctic.

“The biggest habitat for all these pollinating species is grassland rich in flowers and that is vanishing rapidly across European nations because of all these reasons,” stated Martin Warren. “The positive thing is that so many individuals are concerned now and there’s a lot more consciousness. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all member states have to reverse the decrease in pollinating species by 2030, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are land holders who are engaged. We hope they can get the incentives that will support them on their way.”

As per Warren, there is “easy opportunities” in terms of measures for pollinating insects which will not decrease crop yields – and may enhance it – such as growers establishing bloom-filled edges around their cultivated areas.

EU commissioner for environment, described the preservation condition of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “critical”.

“Prompt and unified steps is required to tackle this danger. In collaboration with member states, 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 application and cooperation with member states to safeguard our pollinating species,” she said.

The publication of the assessments on bees and butterflies comes after the pioneering European-wide assessment of hoverflies, an additional essential group of pollinators. Published in twenty-twenty-two, it disclosed that 37% of all hoverfly types in European nations were facing extinction.