Concerning Surge in Endangered Wild Bee Species In the European Continent
The count of native bee species in the European continent experiencing extinction has more than doubled over the past decade, while the total of at-risk butterfly types has almost doubled.
This pressing issue for essential pollinating insects was revealed by scientific studies for the IUCN red list, which established that at least over 170 bee varieties out of nearly two thousand were facing extinction in the European continent.
The count of butterfly species at risk of extinction in European nations has increased from over thirty-five to over sixty since the earlier research, carried out a decade and a half ago. One type, the Madeiran large white (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.
In addition to their aesthetic appeal and cultural importance, pollinators like bees and butterfly species are essential supports for our health, our food chains and our financial structures – supporting the fruits, veggies and seeds that sustain us,” commented the IUCN director general. “The latest European red list evaluations reveal major obstacles, with risks mounting for butterfly types and vital non-managed bee types.”
The reasons of the swift recent drops are the ongoing destruction or damage of living environments caused by agricultural intensification and deserted farmland, draining of wetlands, excessive grazing by animals, and the application of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoid chemicals. The fragmentation of pollinator-friendly habitat significantly raises the risk of local extinctions.
Climate change is also revealed to be a major threat: Over half of all threatened butterfly species in European nations are threatened by the climate change crisis – approximately double the number as a previous decade.
Up to ninety percent of plants that flower in Europe depend on insect pollination, as stated by the wild bee assessment’s lead coordinator. “Sadly, native bee groups are in severe drop and are not easily replaceable by domesticated hives,” he said. “If non-managed bees die out, many non-cultivated plants might be at risk too – of which meadows rich in flowers and beautiful orchid species are just a handful of illustrations.”
15 varieties of bumblebee species, which have an essential part in fertilizing peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties 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 type unique to the continent and the single type of this genus in the European continent, is now assessed as severely threatened – the scientific classification closest to disappearance in the wild.
Butterflies that are only found on mountain peaks are particularly vulnerable to climate change as they must ascend higher as their environments become more heated but ultimately exhaust available space. In the southern part of Spain, the Nevada grayling and the Andalusian anomalous blue are among more than 40% of types unique to Europe (solely present in Europe) at risk of extinction.
In the Mediterranean area, types such as the critically endangered grayling of Karpathos are imperilled by extreme dry conditions and fires.
At the same time, in the Arctic Circle, global heating is resulting in the timberline to shift northward by tens of metres each year, with bushes encroaching on marsh and tundra. Hotter climates also mean reindeer can not anymore cross the frozen water to graze Arctic meadows and maintain them clear. 8 butterfly varieties are at risk of extinction in this region, including the fritillary of Freyja and the ringlet of the Arctic.
“The largest habitat for all these pollinators is grassland rich in flowers and that is declining quickly in European nations because of all these reasons,” stated one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The positive thing is that so many individuals are aware now and there’s a lot more understanding. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all member countries have to turn around the decline in pollinating insects by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to start doing something. There are land holders who are interested. Let’s hope they can receive the incentives that will support them on their way.”
As stated by Martin Warren, there is “low-hanging fruit” in terms of measures for pollinating insects which will not decrease food production – and could improve it – such as agricultural producers developing flower-rich margins around their farmland.
EU commissioner for environment, portrayed the protection status of wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators as “dire”.
“Immediate and joint measures is needed to address this danger. In collaboration with member states, the European Commission has implemented an EU-wide monitoring system for pollinating insects based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will assist in monitoring our progress. Now, we need to focus on application and collaboration with participating nations to preserve our pollinating insects,” she said.
The publication of the assessments on bees and butterflies follows the first European-wide study on hoverflies, another crucial group of pollinators. Issued in 2022, it revealed that 37% of all hoverfly varieties in European nations were facing extinction.
