Alarming Rise in Endangered Native Bee Varieties Throughout Europe

The total of wild bee varieties in the European continent facing dying out has more than doubled during the previous ten-year period, and the total of endangered butterfly has nearly doubled.

This critical situation for vital pollinating species was disclosed by scientific studies for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list, which found that at least 172 bee varieties out of over 1900 were facing extinction in Europe.

The number of butterfly types threatened with extinction in the European continent has grown from 37 to sixty-five since the last study, carried out a decade and a half ago. A single species, the Madeiran large white butterfly (Pieris wollastoni) has now been confirmed extinct.

Apart from their aesthetic appeal and cultural value, pollinating insects like bees along with butterflies are crucial elements for our health, our food supplies and our economies – maintaining the produce, vegetables and seeds that sustain us,” stated the IUCN’s director general. “The newest European red list evaluations reveal serious challenges, with threats increasing for butterfly types and crucial non-managed bee species.”

The factors of the swift recent drops are the ongoing harm or degradation of natural habitats caused by intensive agriculture and land abandonment, draining of wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the application of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoids. The division of habitat friendly to pollinators significantly raises the danger of local extinctions.

Global heating is also shown to be a primary risk: 52% of all threatened butterfly types in the European continent are threatened by the climate emergency – about double the number as a decade ago.

Nearly 90% of plants that flower in the European continent depend on animal pollination, as stated by the wild bee assessment’s lead coordinator. “Regrettably, non-managed bee populations are in severe drop and cannot be easily replaced by managed colonies,” he said. “If native bees disappear, many wild plants might be in danger as well – of which meadows rich in flowers and lovely orchid types are just a couple of instances.”

15 varieties of bumblebees, which perform a vital function in aiding the pollination of crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bee species, recognized for fertilizing trees such as willows along with red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species exclusive to the mainland and the sole species of this genus in the European continent, is now assessed as severely threatened – the research category most akin to extinction in the wild.

Butterfly types that are only found on mountain peaks are especially at risk to climate change as they have to climb upward as their living spaces become hotter but eventually run out of space. In Spain’s southern region, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among more than 40% of European endemics (solely present in Europe) facing extinction.

In the Mediterranean, types such as the highly at-risk Karpathos grayling butterfly are endangered by intense dry conditions and fires.

In the meantime, in the Arctic region, global heating is leading to the timberline to shift northward by many meters each year, with scrub encroaching on bog and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean Arctic deer can no more cross the frozen water to feed on Arctic grasslands and maintain them clear. 8 butterfly varieties are at risk of extinction in this zone, including Freyja’s fritillary and the ringlet of the Arctic.

“The largest habitat for all these pollinating species is grassland rich in flowers and that is declining quickly throughout Europe because of all these reasons,” remarked one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The good news is that so many citizens are aware now and there’s a lot more awareness. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all member states have to halt the decrease in pollinators by 2030, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are land holders who are interested. Let’s hope they can obtain the encouragements that will support them on their way.”

As per Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of action for pollinating insects which will not decrease crop yields – and may enhance it – such as farmers developing bloom-filled edges around their fields.

EU commissioner for environment, characterized the conservation status of wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators as “critical”.

“Urgent and collective action is necessary to address this risk. Along with member countries, the EU Commission has put in place an EU-wide monitoring system for pollinators based on the EU nature restoration law, which will aid in following our progress. Now, we need to focus on execution and partnership with member states to protect our pollinating insects,” she said.

The issuance of the assessments on bees and butterflies is subsequent to the pioneering EU-wide assessment of hoverflies, another essential group of pollinators. Published in twenty-twenty-two, it showed that thirty-seven percent of all hoverfly varieties in Europe were threatened with extinction.