Alarming Rise in At-Risk Wild Bee Varieties In Europe

The count of wild bee types in Europe experiencing extinction has more than doubled over the past decade, while the number of endangered butterfly types has almost doubled.

This critical situation for vital pollinating insects was unveiled by scientific studies for the IUCN red list, which found that at least one hundred seventy-two bee species out of nearly two thousand were facing extinction in Europe.

The count of butterfly types at risk of extinction in Europe has grown from over thirty-five to sixty-five since the previous assessment, conducted a decade and a half ago. One species, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been confirmed extinct.

In addition to their beauty and cultural value, pollinating insects like bees along with butterflies are essential supports for our well-being, our food chains and our economies – sustaining the produce, vegetables and seeds that feed us,” said the IUCN’s director general. “The newest assessments of the European red list reveal significant difficulties, with risks increasing for butterflies and crucial non-managed bee varieties.”

The reasons of the rapid recent declines are the continuing destruction or damage of living environments caused by intensive agriculture and deserted farmland, draining wetlands, overgrazing by livestock, and the application of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid chemicals. The breaking up of habitat friendly to pollinators significantly raises the danger of disappearances in specific areas.

Global heating is also revealed to be a major threat: 52% of all threatened butterflies in Europe are threatened by the climate change crisis – approximately twofold the amount as a ten years ago.

Nearly 90% of plants that flower in Europe depend on insect pollination, as per Dr Denis Michez. “Regrettably, native bee groups are in severe drop and cannot readily be substituted by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If wild bees vanish, many wild plants might be threatened too – of which meadows rich in flowers and attractive orchid varieties are just a handful of illustrations.”

15 varieties of bumblebee species, which have an essential part in pollinating crops such as peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and 14 types of cellophane bee types, famous for pollinating trees such as willows along with red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee type unique to the European continent and the only species of this biological genus in European nations, is now evaluated as critically at risk – the scientific category most akin to extinction in the wild.

Butterflies that are only found on mountain tops are especially at risk to global warming as they need to move uphill as their environments become more heated but in the end run out of space. In southern Spain, the grayling of Nevada and the anomalous blue of Andalusia are among above 40 percent of European endemics (only found in Europe) threatened with extinction.

In the Mediterranean, varieties such as the critically endangered grayling of Karpathos are imperilled by intense dry conditions and fires.

At the same time, in the Arctic Circle, global warming is causing the tree line to advance northwards by tens of metres each year, with scrub taking over bog and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean reindeer can not anymore cross the frozen water to feed on Arctic meadows and prevent them from overgrowing. Eight types of butterflies are facing extinction in this area, including Freyja’s fritillary and the Arctic ringlet.

“The greatest living space for all these pollinating species is grassland rich in flowers and that is vanishing rapidly across the European continent because of all these factors,” stated 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 understanding. Under the EU nature restoration legislation, all participating nations have to halt the drop in pollinators by the year 2030, and they are going to have to begin taking action. There are landowners who are interested. We hope they can obtain the incentives that will assist them on their way.”

According to Warren, there is “readily achievable actions” in terms of steps for pollinators which won’t reduce crop yields – and may enhance it – such as farmers establishing margins rich in flowers around their farmland.

the EU’s environment commissioner, described the protection status of native bees, butterflies and additional pollinators as “dire”.

“Immediate and joint measures is necessary to address this risk. Along with participating nations, the Commission of the European Union has established an European Union-wide observation system for pollinating insects based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will assist in monitoring our advancement. Now, we need to focus on execution and collaboration with member states to safeguard our pollinators,” she said.

The release of the assessments on bees and butterflies comes after the first Europe-wide study on hoverflies, another crucial group of pollinators. Released in twenty-twenty-two, it disclosed that 37% of all hoverfly types in Europe were at risk of extinction.