The number of wild bee species at risk of extinction in Europe has more than doubled in the past decade, with butterflies showing a similar decline, according to new IUCN research.
At least 172 of Europe’s 1,928 wild bee species are now threatened, while endangered butterfly species have risen from 37 to 65. The Madeiran large white has been declared extinct.
“Pollinators like bees and butterflies are lifelines for our food systems and our economies,” said Grethel Aguilar, IUCN director general.
Scientists blame habitat destruction, intensive agriculture, pesticide use, and climate change. More than half of endangered butterflies are now threatened by global heating — twice as many as a decade ago.
Fifteen bumblebee species and 14 cellophane bees, vital for pollinating crops and trees, are now classified as threatened. The mining bee Simpanurgus phyllopodus, unique to Europe, is critically endangered.
Mountain and Arctic butterflies face shrinking habitats as temperatures rise. In southern Spain and the Mediterranean, extreme drought and wildfires are driving species like the Andalusian anomalous blue and Karpathos grayling toward extinction.
“The biggest habitat for pollinators – flower-rich grassland – is disappearing fast,” said Martin Warren, one of the study’s lead authors. He added that EU nature restoration laws now require countries to reverse pollinator decline by 2030.
EU environment commissioner Jessika Roswall called the situation “dire” and urged “urgent and collective action” to protect pollinators.
The report follows a 2022 study showing that 37% of Europe’s hoverfly species are also threatened, highlighting a wider crisis for the continent’s pollinators.
