Worrying Rise in Endangered Native Bee Varieties In Europe

The number of wild bee varieties in European nations experiencing disappearance has more than doubled during the previous ten-year period, while the total of at-risk butterfly species has almost doubled.

This pressing issue for vital pollinators was unveiled by scientific assessments for the IUCN red list, which established that at least over 170 bee types out of over 1900 were at risk of extinction in the European continent.

The count of butterfly species facing extinction in the European continent has risen from thirty-seven to sixty-five since the earlier research, performed 14 years ago. One species, the large white of Madeira (Pieris wollastoni) has now been confirmed extinct.

Apart from their beauty and cultural significance, pollinators like bees and butterflies are essential supports for our physical condition, our food systems and our economies – maintaining the produce, vegetables and seeds that sustain us,” said the IUCN director general. “The newest European red list evaluations reveal major obstacles, with risks increasing for butterfly species and crucial non-managed bee species.”

The factors of the rapid recent declines are the ongoing destruction or damage of natural habitats caused by agricultural intensification and land abandonment, wetland drainage, livestock overgrazing, and the application of pesticides and fertilisers including neonicotinoids. The fragmentation of environments suitable for pollinators significantly raises the risk of extinctions at local level.

Climate change is also shown to be a primary risk: Over half of all endangered butterflies in Europe are imperilled by the climate crisis – approximately double the number as a previous decade.

As many as ninety percent of blooming plants in European nations rely on insect pollination, as per the lead coordinator of the wild bee assessment. “Unfortunately, native bee groups are in sharp decrease and are not easily replaceable by managed bee colonies,” he said. “If native bees disappear, many non-cultivated plants might be in danger as well – of which bloom-filled grasslands and lovely orchid types are just a few examples.”

Fifteen species of bumblebee types, which perform a vital function in pollinating peas, beans, peanuts and clover, and fourteen varieties of cellophane bee species, recognized for aiding tree pollination such as willows and red maples, are now classified as threatened. Simpanurgus phyllopodus, a mining bee found only in the continent and the sole species of this genus in Europe, is now classified as critically endangered – the scientific classification closest to dying out in natural habitats.

Butterfly species that are only found on mountain peaks are particularly vulnerable to global warming as they have to climb upward as their habitats become hotter but in the end run out of space. In Spain’s southern region, the Nevada grayling butterfly and the Andalusian anomalous blue are among above 40 percent of European endemics (solely present in Europe) threatened with extinction.

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

In the meantime, in the Far North, global warming is leading to the tree line to shift northward by tens of metres each year, with bushes invading marsh and tundra. Warmer conditions also mean Arctic deer can no more cross the ice sheets to browse northern grasslands and maintain them clear. 8 butterfly varieties are at risk of extinction in this region, including the fritillary of Freyja and the Arctic ringlet.

“The greatest environment for all these pollinating insects is flower-rich grassland and that is declining quickly in the European continent because of all these factors,” said one of the lead coordinators of the butterflies assessment. “The encouraging aspect is that so many citizens care now and there’s a lot more consciousness. Under the EU’s nature restoration regulation, all member countries have to turn around the decline in pollinators by twenty-thirty, and they are going to have to initiate measures. There are land holders who are engaged. Let’s hope they can get the encouragements that will help them on their way.”

According to the coordinator, there is “readily achievable actions” in terms of measures for pollinating species which will not lower agricultural output – and could improve it – such as growers creating margins rich in flowers around their fields.

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

“Prompt and unified steps is required to address this threat. In collaboration with participating nations, the Commission of the European Union has established an Europe-wide observation system for pollinating insects based on the EU nature restoration regulation, which will help to track our progress. Now, we need to concentrate on execution and collaboration with participating nations to safeguard our pollinating insects,” she said.

The publication of the assessments on bees and butterflies is subsequent to the first Europe-wide evaluation of hoverflies, another essential pollinating insect category. Published in 2022, it revealed that over one-third of all hoverfly species in Europe were threatened with extinction.