Worrying Rise in Endangered Wild Bee Varieties In Europe

The count of wild bee species in Europe facing disappearance has increased twofold in the last ten years, whereas the count of at-risk butterfly species has almost doubled.

This dire scenario for vital pollinating species was unveiled by scientific assessments for the red list of threatened species, which established that at least one hundred seventy-two bee types out of 1,928 were threatened with extinction in European nations.

The total of butterflies facing extinction in the European continent has grown from over thirty-five to 65 since the previous assessment, performed a decade and a half ago. One species, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been confirmed extinct.

Apart from their beauty and cultural importance, pollinating species like bees along with butterflies are lifelines for our well-being, our food supplies and our economies – maintaining the fruits, vegetables and seeds that sustain us,” said the IUCN director general. “The most recent assessments of the European red list reveal significant difficulties, with dangers mounting for butterfly species and essential wild bee species.”

The causes of the swift recent drops are the continuing damage or destruction of natural habitats caused by farming intensification and abandoned land, wetland drainage, excessive grazing by animals, and the utilization of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoid pesticides. The fragmentation of pollinator-friendly habitat significantly raises the risk of local extinctions.

Global heating is also demonstrated to be a significant danger: Over half of all threatened butterfly types in European nations are threatened by the climate change crisis – roughly double the number as a previous decade.

Up to ninety percent of blooming plants in Europe rely on pollination by animals, as per the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Sadly, non-managed bee populations are in drastic decline and cannot readily be substituted by domesticated hives,” he said. “If non-managed bees disappear, many wild plants might be at risk too – of which meadows rich in flowers and attractive orchid varieties are just a couple of instances.”

Fifteen species of bumblebee types, which have an essential part in pollinating legumes like peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 types of cellophane bee species, recognized for aiding tree pollination such as willow trees and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee exclusive to the European continent and the single type of this genus group in European nations, is now evaluated as critically endangered – the scientific classification most akin to disappearance in the wild.

Butterfly species that are only found on mountain peaks are particularly vulnerable to global warming as they have to climb upward as their living spaces become more heated but ultimately have no room left. In the southern part of Spain, the Nevada grayling and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among over forty percent of types unique to Europe (exclusive to Europe) at risk of extinction.

In the Mediterranean, varieties such as the highly at-risk Karpathos grayling butterfly are threatened by extreme drought and wildfires.

At the same time, in the Arctic Circle, climate change is leading to the forest boundary to advance northwards by many meters each year, with bushes invading bog and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean Arctic deer can not anymore cross the ice sheets to feed on northern grasslands and keep them open. Eight types of butterflies are threatened with extinction in this region, including Freyja’s fritillary and the Arctic ringlet butterfly.

“The biggest living space for all these pollinators is flower-rich grassland and that is vanishing rapidly across Europe because of all these factors,” stated one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The good news is that so many people care now and there’s a lot more consciousness. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all member countries have to turn around the decrease in pollinating insects by the year 2030, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are landowners who are interested. Let’s hope they can receive the encouragements that will support them on their way.”

As per the coordinator, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of action for pollinating species which will not lower crop yields – and could improve it – such as farmers creating bloom-filled edges around their fields.

the EU’s environment commissioner, portrayed the conservation status of non-managed bees, butterfly species and other pollinating insects as “dire”.

“Prompt and unified steps is necessary to confront this risk. In collaboration with member countries, the European Commission has put in place an Europe-wide monitoring system for pollinating insects based on the European Union nature restoration legislation, which will help to track our advancement. Now, we need to prioritize application and collaboration with member countries to protect our pollinating species,” she said.

The issuance of the bee and butterfly assessments is subsequent to the initial European-wide study on hoverflies, an additional vital pollinating insect category. Released in twenty-twenty-two, it revealed that 37% of all hoverfly species in the European continent were at risk of extinction.