Alarming Rise in At-Risk Non-Managed Bee Varieties In the European Continent

The total of native bee types in the European continent facing extinction has increased twofold over the past decade, and the number of at-risk butterfly species has close to doubled.

This dire scenario for essential pollinating insects was revealed by scientific assessments for the IUCN red list, which determined that at least 172 bee species out of nearly two thousand were threatened with extinction in European nations.

The count of butterfly species facing extinction in the European continent has risen from 37 to sixty-five since the last study, conducted over a decade past. One type, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been declared extinct.

“Beyond their beauty and cultural value, pollinating insects like bees and butterfly species are lifelines for our well-being, our food systems and our economic systems – supporting the fruits, veggies and seeds that sustain us,” commented the IUCN director general. “The most recent European red list assessments reveal significant difficulties, with risks growing for butterflies and crucial native bee species.”

The causes of the quick recent decreases are the continuing destruction or damage of living environments caused by farming intensification and deserted farmland, draining of wetlands, excessive grazing by animals, and the use of fertilisers and pesticides including neonicotinoid pesticides. The breaking up of environments suitable for pollinators significantly raises the threat of extinctions at local level.

Global heating is also shown to be a primary risk: Fifty-two percent of all at-risk butterfly types in the European continent are imperilled by the climate emergency – roughly twice as many as a ten years ago.

As many as nine out of ten of flowering plants in Europe require animal pollination, as stated by the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Sadly, native bee groups are in sharp decrease and are not easily replaceable by managed colonies,” he said. “If native bees die out, many non-cultivated plants might be threatened too – of which bloom-filled grasslands and attractive orchid varieties are just a couple of instances.”

Fifteen types of bumblebee species, which play a crucial role in fertilizing legumes like peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bee species, famous for fertilizing trees such as willows and red maples, are now listed as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee species exclusive to the European continent and the only species of this genus group in Europe, is now classified as critically at risk – the scientific classification nearest to dying out in natural habitats.

Butterflies that are exclusively located on mountain peaks are especially at risk to global heating as they must ascend higher as their environments become more heated but in the end exhaust available space. In Spain’s southern region, the Nevada grayling and the Andalusian anomalous blue butterfly are among above 40 percent of species endemic to Europe (exclusive to Europe) facing extinction.

In the Mediterranean, species such as the critically endangered Karpathos grayling are threatened by severe wildfires and drought.

In the meantime, in the Far North, global warming is leading to the tree line to advance northwards by dozens of meters each year, with bushes invading bog and tundra. Higher temperatures also mean caribou can not anymore cross the ice sheets to graze Arctic meadows and keep them open. Eight types of butterflies are threatened with extinction in this zone, 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 declining quickly throughout the European continent because of all these reasons,” said Martin Warren. “The good news is that so many individuals are concerned now and there’s a lot more understanding. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all member states have to reverse the drop in pollinators by the year 2030, and they are going to have to initiate measures. There are land holders who are involved. Let’s hope they can get the encouragements that will assist them on their way.”

According to Warren, there is “readily achievable actions” in terms of action for pollinators which will not lower crop yields – and may enhance it – such as growers creating flower-rich margins around their farmland.

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

“Prompt and unified steps is required to address this danger. Along 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 aid in following our advancement. Now, we need to focus on implementation and cooperation with member states to preserve our pollinators,” she said.

The publication of the bee and butterfly assessments follows the first EU-wide study on hoverflies, an additional crucial pollinator group. Released in twenty-twenty-two, it revealed that over one-third of all hoverfly varieties in the European continent were threatened with extinction.