Most European bee species are shrinking in range, not disappearing
Martínez-Núñez C, Duchenne F, de Manincor N, Ghisbain G, Vujic A
Pollinators
The bees and hoverflies pollinating your tomatoes, squash, and fruit trees are losing ground across their range even in places they still technically exist, which means fewer visitors to your garden over time rather than a sudden crash.
Researchers combed through over four million historical sightings of bees and hoverflies across Europe going back a century. Most species haven't disappeared entirely, but a large share of bees and roughly half of hoverflies are showing up in fewer and fewer places over time. The warning signs are clear, but the researchers think the trend could still be turned around with timely conservation efforts.
Key Findings
Database covered over 4 million occurrence records spanning 88% of extant European bee and hoverfly species over the past century.
Species persistence stayed relatively high (87% of bees, 89% of hoverflies still recorded in modern times), but most bee species and about half of hoverfly species declined in occupancy.
Regional richness fell in the Atlantic and Continental regions for both groups, while bees showed recent gains in the Alpine region; species traits like cold-adaptation and parasitism showed only weak links to decline severity.
chevron_right Technical Summary
A century of European records shows most wild bees and about half of hoverfly species have been quietly losing ground, even though most species haven't vanished outright. Scientists warn the declines are a red flag, but say they could still be reversed with prompt action.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Historical trends show more declining than increasing species among European pollinators.
Anthropogenic global change presents a growing threat to insect pollinators. Yet, long-term, continental-scale assessments of their population trends remain limited. Here, we leveraged a curated da...
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