Habitat loss and climate change are having a serious impact on Europe’s butterflies, beetles and dragonflies. The release of the latest European Red List, commissioned by the European Commission, shows that 9% of butterflies, 11% of saproxylic beetles (i.e. beetles that depend on decaying wood) and 14% of dragonflies are threatened with extinction within Europe. Some species are so threatened that they are at risk of global extinction and are now included in the latest update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

This is the first time that the IUCN has assessed saproxylic beetles, which depend on decaying wood and play an essential role in recycling nutrients. A third of the 431 species assessed are unique to Europe. Almost 11% (46 species) are at risk of being lost from the region, and 7% (29 species) are threatened with extinction at the global level. A further 13% (56 species) are listed as Near Threatened within Europe. The main long-term threats to these beetles are habitat loss due to logging and the decline in the number of mature trees.

The European Red List – compiled using the same criteria as the global IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, but limited to Europe – is a review of the conservation status of about 6000 European species (mammals, reptiles, amphibians, freshwater fishes, butterflies, dragonflies, and selected groups of beetles, molluscs, and vascular plants). It identifies species that are threatened with extinction at the regional level so that conservation action can be taken to improve their status. The European Red List is primarily funded by the European Commission.

DG Environment press release

IUCN press release

European Red List