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Applying IUCN criteria to invertebrates: How red is the Red List of European butterflies?
Abstract
The IUCN is the leading authority on assessing species’ extinction risks worldwide and introduced the use of quantitative criteria for the compilation of Red Lists of threatened species. Recently, we assessed the threat status of the 483 European butterfly species, using semi-quantitative data on changes in distribution and in population sizes provided by national butterfly experts. We corrected distribution trends for the observation that coarse-scale grid cells underestimate actual population trends by 35%. To account for uncertainty, we included a 5% error margin on the distribution and population trends provided. The new Red List of European butterflies determined one species as Regionally Extinct, 37 species as threatened (Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable) and a further 44 as Near Threatened. The use of semi-quantitative data on distribution and population trends permitted us to use IUCN criteria to compile a scientifically underpinned Red List of butterflies in Europe. However, a comparison of detailed monitoring data for some grassland species showed that coarse-scale grid cell data and population trends strongly underestimate extinction risks, and the list should be taken as a conservative estimate of threat. Finally, combining the new RedList status with the data provided by the national butterfly experts, allowed us to determine simple criteria to delineate conservation priorities for butterflies in Europe, so called SPecies of European conservation Concern (SPEC’s). Using European butterflies, our approach illustrated how Red Listing can be performed when data are incomplete for some IUCN criteria or vary strongly among countries.
... Despite ample attention in nature management and policies, declines of butterfly numbers or the extinction of local emblematic species have been reported from many European countries (Maes et al. 2019b;Warren et al. 2021). Especially species of oligotrophic and/or wet biotopes such as nutrient-poor semi-natural grasslands, heathlands and/or marshes show the strongest declines (van Swaay et al. 2011). Heathlands, for example, harbour several threatened and unique habitat and resource specialist species with complex mutualistic or parasitic life styles (e.g., myrmecophily - Thomas et al. 1989;De Graaf et al. 2009). ...
... The species is threatened in other NW European countries or regions (the Netherlands -van Swaay 2019; Germany -Reinhardt and Bolz 2011; North Rhine Westphalia -Schumacher and Vorbrüggen 2021; Denmark -Helsing 2019), but also in many other European countries (Maes et al. 2019b). In Europe as a whole, P. alcon was assessed as being of Least Concern (van Swaay et al. 2010), but it was classified as a Species of European Conservation Concern according to van Swaay et al. (2011). ...
... The species is threatened in other NW European countries or regions (the Netherlands -van Swaay 2019; Germany -Reinhardt and Bolz 2011; North Rhine Westphalia -Schumacher and Vorbrüggen 2021; Denmark -Helsing 2019), but also in many other European countries (Maes et al. 2019b). In Europe as a whole, P. alcon was assessed as being of Least Concern (van Swaay et al. 2010), but it was classified as a Species of European Conservation Concern according to van Swaay et al. (2011). ...
In the NW-European region of Flanders (northern Belgium), wet heathlands harbour several threatened species among which the emblematic Alcon Blue butterfly Phengaris alcon is rapidly declining. Since 1990, the number of occupied grid cells in Flanders has decreased from 61 to only six in 2023, a decline of 90%. Due to the loss of many populations, the mean distance between populations tripled from 9 km in the period 1950–1990 to 27 km now. Site-wide egg counts in one of the strongholds of the Alcon Blue in Flanders revealed a strong increase after some initial intensive care conservation measures in the 2000s, but since 2013 a steep decline of 99% has been observed. The standardised egg counts in the remaining six Flemish populations (i.e., monitoring within the framework of the Natura2000 reporting) showed a yearly decrease of 18% since 2016. Despite increased conservation attention and targeted management since the end of the 1990s, the current situation of P. alcon in Belgium is more precarious than ever. Causes of this rapid decline are manifold and they are likely to be amplified by extreme weather conditions caused by climate change. More efficient intensive care measures and more intense cooperation across national borders are now quickly required to regionally preserve this habitat specialist with a unique eco-evolutionary profile.
Implications for insect conservation By analysing the causes of the decline of the threatened Alcon Blue butterfly in Flanders, we suggest management and policy measures in an attempt to conserve this and other threatened heathland species in a highly anthropogenic region.
... The development, application and misuse of these criteria have been documented (Akçakaya et al. 2006;Mace et al. 2008;Collen et al. 2016), as have the wider problems of applying them to insects and other invertebrates due to data constraints (e.g. Cardoso et al. 2011;van Swaay et al. 2011;Azam et al. 2016). Criterion A "Reduction in population size" depends solely on measures of population decline over a (potentially short) time-period of the most recent 10 years or three generations, whichever is longer, hereafter referred to as the "10-year rule" for simplicity. ...
... van Strien et al. 1997). Furthermore, the impact of temporal scale of trend measurement has been noted in comparisons of Red Lists produced using long-term versus 10-year trends (de Iongh and Bal 2007;van Swaay et al. 2011), and authors have recommended or developed adjustments to assessments under IUCN Criterion A to take long-term trends into consideration (Maes et al. 2012). In response, current IUCN guidance acknowledges this issue and sanctions optional use of data over a longer period to model population decline, especially for species with highly variable population levels, while still requiring trends to be measured over the most recent 10 years (IUCN 2017). ...
... Studies using vertebrate population data have concluded that longer time series can improve the assessment of extinction risk under Criterion A, and practitioners undertaking Red Listing of butterflies have highlighted the same issue (van Swaay et al. 2011;Maes et al. 2012). Indeed the current IUCN guidelines reflect this, suggesting that using data from a longer time period to fit a statistical model of population decline may be preferable for species that have widely fluctuating or oscillating population dynamics (in Sect. ...
Reliable assessment of extinction risk is a key factor in the preparation of Red Lists and in prioritizing biodiversity conservation. Temporal population trends can provide important evidence for such assessments, but imperfect sampling (observation errors) and short-term stochastic variation in population levels caused by environmental variability (process errors) can reduce the reliability of trends and lead to incorrect quantification of extinction risk. The assessment of insect taxa is likely to be particularly prone to these problems, due to the highly dynamic nature of many insect populations, driven by short life-cycles and sensitivity to environmental factors such as the weather. Using long-term United Kingdom monitoring data for 54 butterfly and 431 macro-moth species, we demonstrate the impact of insect population variability on the assessment of extinction risk using the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List Criterion A (reduction in population size over the last 10 years). For both taxa, varying the start year of the 10-year population trend had a substantial effect on whether particular species met Red List thresholds and on the overall number of species assessed as threatened. We conclude that for these insect taxa strict application of the 10-year rule produces Red List classifications that are unacceptably biased by the start year. Use of long-term trends with adjustment based on species performance over the last decade may offer a pragmatic solution to this problem. We call for further IUCN guidance for practitioners undertaking Red List assessments of taxa with populations that have high temporal variability.
... It is imperative to explore how social cues affect their habitat exploration and selection. Butterflies, as bioindicators and subjects of long-term monitoring, provide insights into the effects of habitat quality and social information on population dynamics (van Swaay et al. 2011). Their decline is most pronounced in habitat specialists reliant on vulnerable host plants or habitats (van Swaay et al. 2011). ...
... Butterflies, as bioindicators and subjects of long-term monitoring, provide insights into the effects of habitat quality and social information on population dynamics (van Swaay et al. 2011). Their decline is most pronounced in habitat specialists reliant on vulnerable host plants or habitats (van Swaay et al. 2011). Recent research showed that social cues influence butterfly behaviours, including sexual interactions (Dion et al. 2019, Nieberding et al. 2021, Webster 2023, but see Aikins et al. 2023), but most evidence comes from laboratory settings, with limited experiments in natural conditions. ...
Habitat fragmentation and loss is a known threat to biodiversity. Their combined effect leaves organisms in small isolated habitat patches, contributing to the current biodiversity crisis. The first response of animals to environmental change is typically behavioural. Beyond the physical elements of the environment, the ‘social landscape’ shapes the spatial distribution of the habitats available to organisms. Here, we test the hypothesis that visual social cues and habitat structure alter behaviours in a nonsocial insect, the wood white butterfly (Leptidea sinapis, Linnaeus 1758). We tested 85 wild-caught female individuals from landscapes with various habitat structures in outdoor cages reproducing habitats with or without visual social cues. We demonstrate that the presence of same-sex congeners is a social signal to remain within a suitable patch of habitat. We further show that habitat structure is associated with oviposition success and investment in navigation but not with emigration. Butterflies from smaller, more fragmented habitat patches relied more on routine movement and had lower oviposition success compared with those from larger, less fragmented patches (except at the highest temperatures). Many insect species in Europe, including L. sinapis, are reportedly in decline. Our results indicate the importance of considering both physical and social landscape elements when assessing the impacts of landscape changes on insect behaviour, and consequently in the planning of conservation and habitat restoration efforts. Applying this approach to other nonsocial insects will be critical to fully understand how habitat structure influences their populations and contributes to declines.
... Insects, including many butterfly species, are vulnerable to human-induced rapid environmental changes ("HIREC" hereafter) and especially to land-use changes, including modern industrial farming and forestry practices [6]. Butterflies are key bioindicators of habitat quality and flagship species for documenting the ongoing biodiversity crisis since their population and distribution changes have been monitored for decades [7]. Currently, about 19% of all European butterfly species are in the IUCN categories threatened or near threatened, with populations rapidly declining [7]. ...
... Butterflies are key bioindicators of habitat quality and flagship species for documenting the ongoing biodiversity crisis since their population and distribution changes have been monitored for decades [7]. Currently, about 19% of all European butterfly species are in the IUCN categories threatened or near threatened, with populations rapidly declining [7]. Extinction risk of European butterflies is highly associated with habitat loss and fragmentation, in particular due to impacts on larval host plants and/or adult habitats [8,9]. ...
There is broad evidence that the main driver of the ongoing biodiversity crisis is land-use change, which reduces and fragments habitats. The consequence of habitat fragmentation on behavioural responses of fitness-related traits in insects have been so far understudied. In herbivorous insects, oviposition-related behaviours determine access to larval food, and the fate of the next generation. We present a pilot study to assess differences in behaviours related to movement and oviposition in Limenitis camilla butterflies from Wallonia (Belgium), one of the most fragmented regions in Europe. We first quantified variation in functional habitat connectivity across Wallonia and found that fragmented habitats had more abundant, but less evenly distributed host plants of L. camilla. Secondly, we quantified the behaviours of field-caught L. camilla females originating from habitats with contrasted landscape connectivity in an outdoor experimental setting. We found differences in behaviours related to flight investment: butterflies from fragmented woodlands spent more time in departing flight, which we associated with dispersal, than butterflies from homogenous woodlands. Although results from this study should be interpreted with caution given the limited sample size, they provide valuable insights for the advancement of behavioural research that aims to assess the effects of global changes on insects.
... Insects, including many butterfly species, are vulnerable to human-induced rapid environmental changes ("HIREC" hereafter) and especially to land-use changes, including modern industrial (so-called "conventional") farming and forestry practices (Warren et al. 2021). Butterflies are key bioindicators of habitat quality and flagship species for documenting the ongoing biodiversity crisis since their population trends and distribution changes have been uniquely monitored for decades (van Swaay et al. 2011). Currently, about 19% of all European butterfly species are in the IUCN categories threatened or near threatened, with populations rapidly declining (Van Swaay et al. 2011). ...
... Butterflies are key bioindicators of habitat quality and flagship species for documenting the ongoing biodiversity crisis since their population trends and distribution changes have been uniquely monitored for decades (van Swaay et al. 2011). Currently, about 19% of all European butterfly species are in the IUCN categories threatened or near threatened, with populations rapidly declining (Van Swaay et al. 2011). Extinction risk of European butterflies is highly associated with habitat loss and fragmentation, 3 in particular due to impacts on larval host plants or adult habitats Sánchez-Bayo and Wyckhuys 2019). ...
Human induced environmental changes are accelerating at an unprecedented pace, forcing organisms to rapidly adjust their behaviours. There is broad evidence that the main driver of the ongoing biodiversity crisis is land-use change, that reduces and fragments natural habitats. However, the consequence of habitat fragmentation on behavioural responses of fitness-related traits such as oviposition site selection in insects, which represent about 50% of Earth's species diversity, have been so far understudied. In herbivorous insects, oviposition-related behaviours determine larval food access, and thus the fate of the next generation. We present a pilot study to assess differences in oviposition-related behaviours in Limenitis camilla butterflies from Wallonia (Belgium), one of the most fragmented regions in Europe. We first quantified variation in functional habitat connectivity for L. camilla across Wallonia and found that fragmented habitats had more abundant, but less evenly distributed Lonicera periclymenum, the host plant of L. camilla. Secondly, we compared in a semi-natural experimental setting the behaviours of field-caught L. camilla females originating from habitats with contrasted landscape connectivity. We found differences in behaviours related to flight investment: butterflies from fragmented woodlands spent more time in non-compass orientation flight, which we associated with dispersal, than butterflies from homogeneous woodlands, where L. periclymenum was less abundant and more evenly distributed. Although results from this study should be interpreted with caution given the limited sample size, they provide valuable insights for the advancement of behavioural research that aims to assess the effects of global changes on insects.
... There are many metrics to describe the plant community, such as species abundance, species richness, or evenness (Bauman et al., 2015;Li et al., 2017;Shackelford et al., 2017). Each metric provides certain information and has application limitations (Taft et al., 2006). Alatalo (1981) considered that evenness measures of calculations which include richness were limited by sampling biases. ...
... Soil, as a major environmental factor affecting vegetation reconstruction, is often accompanied by a shortage or excess of nutrient or pollutant contents in mining areas, and it would accelerate or inhibit the growth of vegetation (Lei et al., 2016;Ahirwal et al., 2017). Therefore, it is necessary to measure the effects of soil and other environmental factors on vegetation restoration (van Swaay et al., 2011). ...
Open-pit mining activities cause great damage to the local ecosystems. It is therefore necessary to assess and recover the vegetation status to maintain ecological stability. In this study, the Floristic Quality Index (FQI) was used to assess the vegetation habitat and the structural equation model (SEM) was applied to quantify the influences of different environmental factors on FQI in the Kunyang open-pit phosphate rock mine in Yunnan Province, China. Non-metric multidimensional scaling analyses revealed that great differences of vegetation community composition existed in the sampled plots, even those at similar distances to mining areas, which indicates that disturbing distance was not the only factor to determine the vegetation community. SEM results showed that Cu promoted the FQI most obviously (0.84), followed by Co (0.75), while the inhibition of Cd content in soil to the FQI was the most significant (−0.88), followed by TK (−0.82), and C (−0.79). Soil fertility quality and soil pollution indexes were also established to analyze the effects of comprehensive soil parameters on FQI. The results showed that the soil fertility quality index had a strong negative effect on FQI, which revealed that higher levels of TP, TN, TK, and other nutrients in the soil would produce 'toxicity' to the growth of vegetation. Findings from our study could provide a scientific method for assessing the ecological restoration results in the mining area.
... The Red List of European Butterflies. An overview of the status of all 482 European butterflies was produced in 2010 using distribution monitoring data, published studies, and expert opinion (27,28). The results showed that one species was regionally extinct in Europe and that 37 of the 435 assessed species (9%) were classified as threatened (3 critically endangered, 12 endangered, and 22 vulnerable). ...
... Since the assessment, Pieris wollastoni, an endemic of Madeira, is assumed to have become globally extinct (the first documented butterfly extinction in Europe). However, the lack of accurate data in large parts of eastern Europe means that this Red List assessment most likely underestimates the overall threats to European butterflies (28). ...
We review changes in the status of butterflies in Europe, focusing on long-running population data available for the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Belgium, based on standardized monitoring transects. In the United Kingdom, 8% of resident species have become extinct, and since 1976 overall numbers declined by around 50%. In the Netherlands, 20% of species have become extinct, and since 1990 overall numbers in the country declined by 50%. Distribution trends showed that butterfly distributions began decreasing long ago, and between 1890 and 1940, distributions declined by 80%. In Flanders (Belgium), 20 butterflies have become extinct (29%), and between 1992 and 2007 overall numbers declined by around 30%. A European Grassland Butterfly Indicator from 16 European countries shows there has been a 39% decline of grassland butterflies since 1990. The 2010 Red List of European butterflies listed 38 of the 482 European species (8%) as threatened and 44 species (10%) as near threatened (note that 47 species were not assessed). A country level analysis indicates that the average Red List rating is highest in central and mid-Western Europe and lowest in the far north of Europe and around the Mediterranean. The causes of the decline of butterflies are thought to be similar in most countries, mainly habitat loss and degradation and chemical pollution. Climate change is allowing many species to spread northward while bringing new threats to susceptible species. We describe examples of possible conservation solutions and a summary of policy changes needed to conserve butterflies and other insects. insect decline | butterflies | conservation | Europe | monitoring
... In Toscana è stato segnalato per un numero limitato di località delle province di Arezzo, Firenze, Grosseto, Livorno, Lucca, Massa Carrara, Pisa e Siena (Favilli et al., 2013). È considerato "Near Threatened" in Europa (van Swaay et al., 2010(van Swaay et al., , 2011. Z. cassandra è stata rilevata nei comprensori del Monte Labbro, del Monte Civitella e del Monte Cetona. ...
... In Toscana è presente in modo abbastanza discontinuo (Fabiano et al., 2001) e la sua distribuzione è ancora pochissimo nota per carenza di dati (Cianferoni & Bartolozzi, 2012). È uno dei ropaloceri più minacciati in Europa: è considerata globalmente "Lower Risk/Nearly Threatened" da IUCN (2016); è inclusa nell'Allegato IV della Direttiva 92/43/CEE; è ritenuta "Endangerd" nella Lista Rossa europea (van Swaay et al., 2010) e "SPEC1" in Europa (specie regionally extinct/critically endangered/endangered/vulnerable in Europe) (van Swaay et al., 2011). I. iolas è stata rilevata soltanto nelle praterie del Monte Cetona. ...
We studied the Lepidoptera Rhopalocera of calcareous grasslands of southern Tuscany, habitats of community interest in conservation priorities in accordance with Directive 92/43/EEC. Were examined six areas in the provinces of Livorno (Monte Calvi), Siena (Le Cornate and Monte Cetona) and Grosseto (Monte Calvo, Le Cornate, Monte Labbro and Monte Civitella) with significant extensions of grasslands (> 15 ha). The study showed that these grasslands are important areas for
lepidotterofauna hosting 108 species of which 25 (23.1%) of conservation interest. In particular the Monte Calvo, Le Cornate, Monte Labbro, Monte Cetona and Monte Civitella are distinguished by the presence of rich populations of “target species” Maculinea arion (Linné, 1758) and Melanargia arge (Sulzer, 1776) justifying their inclusion among the “Prime Butterfly Areas”. Even xerocalcicole
grasslands of southern Tuscany as European ones are gradually reducing, and in few years could disappear. For their maintenance is suggested the application of management standards including:
the recovery of extensive grazing and planning by calculating the “carrying capacity”; alternating grazing areas with annual rest areas; mowing the grass vegetation through haymaking diluted over
time of limited surfaces; the reduction of herbaceous vegetation by means of controlled winter burns; the limitation of the development of shrubs through periodic cuts.
... The combination of biodiversity data from all over the world contributed to reveal the human-induced sixth mass extinction (Ceballos et al., 2015) and to identify it as one of the major planetary problems humanity faces today (Rockström et al., 2009). The assessment of the status of individual species is often a matter of expert consensus based on the literature and, basically, on regional or national surveys (more and more citizen science data is used to determine the Extent of Occurrence and/or Area of Occupancy; also to calculate trends) (van Swaay et al., 2011;Maes et al., 2015). A rather implicit or explicit set of models is then used by the expert groups to consolidate the regional assessments into a global assessment. ...
... It is clear that full local to global assessments with full distribution and historical data are much better when affordable at reasonable cost. Our method cannot qualitatively replace more specific global studies involving all cartographic data and best experts (see van Swaay et al., 2011;Maes et al., 2015). ...
Identifying the percentage of endangered species is crucial for the protection of biodiversity from local to global levels. However, the high costs of species evaluation jeopardise the feasibility of evaluating all world species. We propose a model to consolidate imperfect local assessments to a first (conservative) estimation of national to global assessment. We used it for the evaluation of 8132 Belgian species starting with incomplete red lists at lower geographic levels (Belgian regions). The model is based on the logical assumption that if a species is safe («Least Concern») at local level (> 10 000 km2), then it is safe at global level. It can be used at various geographic levels to help aggregate imperfect local red lists into a first estimate of global ones. Testing the model shows that it gives very conservative results because less species are evaluated endangered at global level than when using other methods. Our model can deal with non-standard local red lists, with an error range that is reducing when local red lists become compliant with the IUCN standards. It cannot and does not aim to replace full IUCN-compliant assessments. We show the value of publishing the lists of currently safe species – not only those that are threatened. Actually, in the light of the sixth mass extinction, identifying safe species becomes as important as those that are endangered. We encourage trained biologists to evaluate less-known groups like invertebrates, algae, or microfungi. Our model facilitates a low cost first rough conservative estimate at global level. This can help historical reviews as well as identifying research and policy priorities. Our tests question the IUCN guidelines for species that are stable but only present in areas smaller than a few km2.
... Also at the European level, the IUCN Red List for butterflies is available (van Swaay et al. 2010). Especially for invertebrates, the applicability of IUCN criteria for national or regional Red Lists has been criticised by some as inappropriate (Cardoso et al. 2011;van Swaay et al. 2011), but defended by others (Collen and Böhm 2012). Here, we propose an alternative method to overcome the differences in Red List approaches among countries and to complement the present European IUCN Red List (van Swaay et al. 2010). ...
... On the basis of our study, we can determine nine species that are endemic to Europe, that are not on the Habitats Directive, that are classified as critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable (or were not assessed or data deficient) on the European Red List of butterflies, that have a wsRLV ≥ 30: Pseudochazara orestes, Agriades zullichi, Polyommatus humedasae, Pyrgus cirsii, Polyommatus orphicus, Pseudochazara amymone (Verovnik et al. 2014), Pseudochazara cingovskii, Pseudochazara euxina and Euchloe bazae (Tables 2, 3). All of these species were also mentioned as Species of European Conservation Concern in a follow-up exercise of the Red List of European butterflies (van Swaay et al. 2011) and are most in need of ecological research and/ or monitoring for their conservation in Europe. ...
Red Lists are very valuable tools in nature conservation at global, continental and (sub-) national scales. In an attempt to prioritise conservation actions for European butterflies, we compiled a database with species lists and Red Lists of all European countries, including the Macaronesian archipelagos (Azores, Madeira and Canary Islands). In total, we compiled national species lists for 42 countries and national Red Lists for 34 of these. The most species-rich countries in Europe are Italy, Russia and France with more than 250 species each. Endemic species are mainly found on the Macaronesian archipelagos and on the Mediterranean islands. By attributing numerical values proportionate to the threat statuses in the different national Red List categories, we calculated a mean Red List value for every country (cRLV) and a weighted Red List value for every species (wsRLV) using the square root of the country’s area as a weighting factor. Countries with the highest cRLV were industrialised (NW) European countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, the Czech Republic and Denmark, whereas large Mediterranean countries such as Spain and Italy had the lowest cRLV. Species for which a Red List assessment was available in at least two European countries and with a relatively high wsRLV (≥ 50) are Colias myrmidone, Pseudochazara orestes, Tomares nogelii, Colias chrysotheme and Coenonympha oedippus. We compared these wsRLVs with the species statuses on the European Red List to identify possible mismatches. We discuss how this complementary method can help to prioritise butterfly conservation on the continental and/or the (sub-)national scale.
... Many assessed species face considerable knowledge gaps, as evidenced by the prevalence of data deficient (DD) taxa. Data availability and quality are often uneven across regions, affecting many groups, including invertebrates (van Swaay et al. 2011), subterranean taxa (Wynne et al., 2021), fishes (Miqueleiz et al. 2020), amphibians (Nori et al. 2018), and reptiles (Tingley et al. 2016). Many such species are also elusive or difficult to identify, further complicating the task. ...
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is a critical tool in global conservation, providing essential information on species' conservation status worldwide. However, the current assessment process faces several challenges, including data gaps, standard inconsistencies across taxonomic groups, and a limited assessor pool. Data gaps are common for many taxa, particularly those more difficult to observe or identify with wide, fragmented ranges. We use bats as a model to highlight challenges and propose solutions relevant to many taxonomic groups. Basic presence data and population estimates are often missing, with critical information unpublished or inaccessible for assessments. Assessors are responsible for reviewing all available information, seeking advice from local or taxon‐specific experts, and compiling a comprehensive species status assessment. We propose a network of regional operators, researchers, and stakeholders who could regularly contribute updated data on populations, threats, and conservation actions, employing a dynamic real‐time repository. This approach would enable assessors to access an up‐to‐date overview, improving the Red List assessments' efficiency, accuracy, and consistency. Expanding assessors and training early‐career professionals would also standardize evaluation criteria and reduce subjectivity. By capitalizing on IUCN's training expertise, these changes aim to enhance the robustness of assessments, supporting more effective, evidence‐based conservation.
... Studies have shown that local wild bee diversity and abundance decreases with increasing distance from field margins and natural habitats and non-bee pollinators, including butterflies, are also declining in abundance and diversity (Carvalheiro et al., 2013). Assessments at national and regional levels indicate high levels of threat primarily for bees and butterflies (Van Swaay et al., 2011). ...
Aim: This study investigates the role of indigenous knowledge in butterfly conservation within the Ebo Forest Reserve, Littoral Region, Cameroon. Pollinators, particularly butterflies, are critical for ecosystem health, yet they face significant declines due to habitat loss, pesticide use, and climate change. Methods: Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, local communities in Iboti and Lognanga were engaged to assess their knowledge, perceptions, and contributions to butterfly conservation. The research was conducted in communities adjacent to the Ebo Forest Reserve, Cameroon, between January and July 2024. The majority of the respondents (59%) were from the Iboti community, while 41% were from the Lognanga community. The survey included questions about ecological significance, perceived threats, and cultural associations related to butterflies. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics and inferential statistics to evaluate the relationships between demographic factors and attitudes toward butterflies. Results: The study found that while community members possess a general awareness of butterfly presence, specific ecological knowledge, such as dietary preferences, is limited. A majority (68%) frequently observe butterflies, and 83% have noted recent population changes, with most perceiving stability in butterfly numbers. Despite high interest in conservation initiatives (81.9%), significant barriers exist, including limited resources and lack of awareness about conservation efforts. Conclusion: Local ecological knowledge should be integrated into conservation strategies, with emphasize on community-led initiatives to enhance butterfly conservation in the Ebo Forest Reserve. Recommendation: To enhance butterfly conservation efforts in the Ebo Forest Reserve, it is crucial to develop and implement community-led educational programs that focus on indigenous knowledge and ecological practices.
... In recent decades, agricultural intensification and land-use change have largely determined the reduction and fragmentation of this biodiverse habitat that harbours the highest richness of vascular plants, butterflies and grasshoppers in central Europe [39][40][41][42]. Due to these characteristics, calcareous grasslands are considered core habitats and conservation priorities in Europe and are therefore legally protected in the European Union [43,44]. ...
Understanding the organization of mutualistic networks at multiple spatial scales is key to ensure biological conservation and functionality in human-modified ecosystems. Yet, how changing habitat and landscape features affect pollen–bee interaction networks is still poorly understood. Here, we analysed how bee–flower visitation and bee–pollen-transport interactions respond to habitat fragmentation at the local network and regional metanetwork scales, combining data from 29 fragments of calcareous grasslands, an endangered biodiversity hotspot in central Europe. We found that only 37% of the total unique pairwise species interactions occurred in both pollen-transport and flower visitation networks, whereas 28% and 35% were exclusive to pollen-transport and flower visitation networks, respectively. At local level, network specialization was higher in pollen-transport networks, and was negatively related to the diversity of land cover types in both network types. At metanetwork level, pollen transport data revealed that the proportion of single-fragment interactions increased with landscape diversity. Our results show that the specialization of calcareous grasslands’ plant–pollinator networks decreases with landscape diversity, but network specialization is underestimated when only based on flower visitation information. Pollen transport data, more than flower visitation, and multi-scale analyses of metanetworks are fundamental for understanding plant–pollinator interactions in human-dominated landscapes.
... Their adaptation to escape predation by ants and instead exploit them to provide both a safe space and food ensures a high larval survival, which confers a clear evolutionary advantage (Als et al. 2004;Tartally et al. 2019). In times of change, however, the dependence on both host ants and host plants from low-productive environments (Elmes et al. 1998), which are threatened by land use intensification as well as abandonment (WallisDeVries 2014; Warren et al. 2021), has led to the demise of all four species of Phengaris (Maculinea) butterflies in large parts of Europe (Wynhoff 1998;Thomas et al. 2009;Van Swaay et al. 2011). ...
Insect habitat specialists have declined more than generalists over the last decades. Understanding how habitat requirements and increased climate variability interact to explain persistence of populations is needed to enable effective conservation measures. Habitat specialists with a complex life cycle, such as myrmecophilous butterflies, are likely to be most vulnerable. Here, we explored to what extent the habitat factors explaining population persistence of the Alcon blue (Phengaris alcon), changed over a 25-year period in the Netherlands, contrasting the recent years 2018–2022 with extreme droughts with the preceding period 1998–2017 characterized by occasional climatic extremes. Population persistence of P. alcon over 1998–2017 as explained by historical habitat conditions was significantly higher in large heathland areas with large patches of its host plant Gentiana pneumonanthe. On the basis of current conditions, population persistence until 2017 was best explained by a combination of host plant area and quality. In contrast, persistence over the recent drought years was most closely associated with increasing occupancy of the optimal host ant Myrmica ruginodis and lower occupancy of competitive and predatory Lasius ants.
Implications for insect conservation We conclude that critical habitat conditions change under increasing climatic extremes and that the availability of sufficient optimal host ants has become more critical than that of host plants. The results emphasise that both large-scale hydrological restoration and small-scale management for heterogeneity are necessary to preserve P. alcon and its habitat in the Netherlands. This is also likely to apply to other habitat specialists with complex life cycles from threatened habitats.
... Despite the rapidly changing conditions that usually characterize urban and peri-urban landscapes, the establishment of protected, natural or semi-natural areas and consequent urban planning restrictions provide relatively stable conditions within some of these green spaces, as also suggested by historical records of Z. cassandra at the same sites reported by our study, dating back to early 1900's (reviewed by Zapparoli 1997). Several Zerynthia species have declined steeply across (van Swaay et al. 2011), also in at least one of our study locations (Fattorini 2011), namely due to the dramatic land use changes associated with agricultural intensification and urbanization that replace the ecotonal habitats favored by Aristolochia plants, and the dry meadows that provide nectar resources in early spring. Both these factors are key to the survival of these species, and yet, surprisingly, Zerynthia butterflies seem to be able to persist in fragmented and deeply modified landscapes, including urban and suburban green areas, such as those from our case study. ...
Cities are expanding at fast rates across the world, representing one of the main drivers of biodiversity loss due to habitat replacement. Nonetheless, urban and peri-urban areas often feature green spaces that may offer opportunities to wildlife and even represent safe havens for endangered species. Nonetheless, the key drivers that shape wildlife responses to urban landscapes, and in turn their ability to persist within cities, are far from being fully understood. Here we focus on an ecologically specialized butterfly, the endemic Italian festoon Zerynthia cassandra, as a model to assess how endangered species may survive in highly modified urban landscapes. The relatively low mobility and high host plant specialization make Z. cassandra an excellent target for studies in urban ecology, as they make the species able to exploit small suitable patches while at the same time potentially sensitive to habitat fragmentation and loss due to urbanization and land reclamation. We thus first document the relatively widespread occurrence of potentially suitable sites within two highly modified landscapes of central and southern Italy, with 25 and 35% of sites actually occupied by Z. cassandra. By modeling the probability of butterfly occurrence as a function of environmental characteristics, we found that Z. cassandra is strongly influenced by functional connectivity among suitable sites in urban landscapes, as well as by the abundance of Aristolochia host plants, and by the availability of profitable land cover classes in the immediate surroundings of potential oviposition sites. Our results indicate not only that networks of urban and peri-urban green spaces may host populations of protected and endangered species, but that management should also focus on the urban matrix in order to provide connecting corridors, as key assets to guarantee species persistence in cities.
... In light of these challenges, it is imperative to delve deeper into how social cues can influence the ability of non-social insects, such as butterflies, to explore and select suitable habitats, beyond the physical structure of the landscape. Butterflies are important bioindicators for habitat quality and are flagship taxa for documenting the ongoing biodiversity crisis as their population trends and spatial distributions have been monitored particularly well in Europe for decades (van Swaay et al. 2011). Butterfly population dynamics depend on the abundance of host plants, and butterfly decline in Europe is most pronounced for habitat specialists or sedentary species that depend on host plants or habitats most susceptible to regression (Habel et al. 2016;Seibold et al. 2019). ...
Habitat fragmentation and loss is a known threat to biodiversity. Their combined effect leaves organisms in small isolated patches of habitat, contributing to the current biodiversity crisis. The first response of animals to environmental change is typically behavioral. Beyond the physical elements of the environment, the "social landscape" shapes the spatial distribution of the habitats available to organisms. In this article, we test the hypothesis that social cues and habitat structure alter behaviors in a non-social insect. We tested 85 wild-caught L. sinapis females from landscapes with various habitat structures in outdoor cages reproducing habitats with or without social cues. We demonstrate that the presence of same-sex congeners is a social signal to remain within a suitable patch of habitat. We further show that habitat structure is associated with oviposition success and investment in navigation but not with emigration. Butterflies from small, fragmented habitat patches relied more in routine movement and had lower oviposition success. Like many other insects in Europe, L. sinapis is in decline. Our results suggest that this decline may be exacerbated in degraded habitats due to behavioral strategies selected by both physical and social landscape elements.
... The limited migration capacity of Erebia (Polic et al., 2014), combined with the vast distance between the Austrian and Swiss populations (> 200 km), indicates that gene flow should be nearly impossible. The life history of E. nivalis may lead to an increased local vulnerability; indeed, the species was recorded as declining by van Swaay et al. (2011). However, genomic insight into E. nivalis is lacking, making it an ideal candidate to study genetic diversity changes in a disjunctly distributed species. ...
Cold‐adapted species at high elevations may be especially impacted by global warming since they may be limited in their capacity to adapt to changing conditions or may be prevented from shifting their distributions upwards if no suitable habitats are available.
The latter may be true for Erebia nivalis , a high‐elevation specialist that mainly occurs in the Austrian Alps and on few mountaintops in Switzerland, where its taxonomic and conservation status remains unclear.
We aimed to clarify the relationships among geographically isolated populations of E. nivalis using whole‐genome resequencing data to reconstruct population connectivity and phylogenetic relationships. We inferred current and historical effective population sizes and combined these with tests for ecological differentiation based on available occurrence data to re‐evaluate the conservation status of E. nivalis.
Our results confirm that Swiss and Austrian E. nivalis should be considered different evolutionarily significant units for conservation purposes, as they are marked by moderate genomic differentiation, distinct demographic histories and a difference in the abiotic conditions of their habitats.
In both Austria and Switzerland, we found rapid uphill range shifts over the last decades, little population connectivity, low current effective population sizes and low genetic diversity. The above, combined with the low dispersal capacity of this 2‐year lifecycle species and its need to overwinter under snow, which is rapidly retreating from several regions of the Alps, leads us to suggest that the status of E. nivalis should be updated to ‘Vulnerable’ or ‘Endangered’ in the European, Swiss and Austrian Red Lists.
... The boreo-montane species Boloria aquilonaris (Nymphalidae, Heliconinae), Coenonympha tullia (Nymphalidae, Satyrinae) and Lycaena helle (Lycaenidae) have a patchy distribution in Europe and are among the most endangered European butterflies (van Swaay et al., 2011). The main causes of the recent decline of these peatland species are land-use changes (peat exploitation, drainage of wetlands and conversion to crop production or urbanization) and climate change (Settele et al., 2008;Noreika et al., 2016). ...
Climate is a main driver of species distributions, but all species are not equally affected by climate change, and their differential responses to similar climatic constraints might dramatically affect the local species composition. In the context of climate warming, a better knowledge of the ability of dispersal-limited and habitat-specialist species to track climate change at local scale is urgently needed. Comparing the population genetic and demographic impacts of past climate cycles in multiple co-distributed species with similar ecological requirements help predicting the community-scale response to climate warming, but such comparative studies remain rare. Here, we studied the relationship between demographic history and past changes in spatial distribution of three protected peatland butterfly species (Boloria aquilonaris, Coenonympha tullia, Lycaena helle) in the Jura massif (France), using a genomic approach (ddRAD sequencing) and species distribution modeling (SDM). We found a similar and narrow thermal niche among species, and shared demographic histories of post-glacial decline and recent fragmentation of populations. Each species functions as a single metapopulation at the regional scale, with a North-South gradient of decreasing genetic diversity that fits the local dynamics of the ice cover over time. However, we found no correlation between changes in the quantity or the quality of suitable areas and changes in effective population size over time. This suggests that species ranges moved beyond the Jura massif during the less favorable climatic periods, and/or that habitat loss and deterioration are major drivers of the current dramatic decline observed in the three species. Our findings allow better understanding how history events and contemporary dynamics shape local biodiversity, providing valuable knowledge to identify appropriate conservation strategies.
... A successful reintroduction is, therefore, an important demonstration that conservation lessons can be learnt and loss reversed, counteracting a predominantly pessimistic outlook for invertebrates caused by declining abundance, distribution, and richness trends (e.g. Shirt, 1987;Warren et al., 1997;Fox et al., 2010;van Swaay et al., 2011;IPBES, 2019;Sánchez-Bayo and Wyckhus, 2019;Warren et al., 2021). Publicity generated by butterfly reintroduction can also increase wildlife tourism to an area, as well as encourage participation in volunteer monitoring programmes, guided walks, and other family engagement events. ...
Over 41% of global insect species have declined over the past decade, compared with 22% of vertebrate species. For Lepidoptera, 53% of species are declining and 34% are threatened globally. Since 1976, 80% of butterflies species have declined in either abundance or occurrence or both in the United Kingdom (UK). A total of 24 of 62 (41%) UK butterfly species assessed as part of a 2022 Red List of British Butterflies published by UK conservation charity Butterfly Conservation are classed as Threatened, with a further five (9%) as Near Threatened. The number of Threatened UK butterflies continues to rise and shows no sign of abating. A total of six butterfly species have been declared extirpated in the UK in recorded history, including the chequered skipper butterfly Carterocephalus palaemon, which was lost from England in 1976 after a precipitous decline that was believed to have started in the 1960s. However, due to a paucity of available data, the species’ historic distribution and abundance in England was poorly understood.
As part of the Butterfly Conservation-led reintroduction of C. palaemon to Rockingham Forest in Northamptonshire known as Back from the Brink – Roots of Rockingham (2018-21), a research project was developed to enhance the 266 historic records of C. palaemon that exist on the Butterflies for the New Millennium (BNM) database through museum and other uncollated data, and use the enhanced dataset used to analyse the pattern of C. palaemon decline and extirpation in England. In 2018, 42 adult C. palaemon were released at Fineshade Wood using stock translocated from donor populations in Belgium. The Fineshade Wood population was sampled in 2019, 2020, and 2021 to estimate its size, determine the mobility and dispersal of individual butterflies, and describe the ecology of the reintroduced species. A complementary review was undertaken to determine the global status of butterfly reintroductions, and the impact of woodland management on other taxa at Fineshade Wood was assessed.
A novel, non-invasive photographic-mark-recapture (PMR) population sampling technique was developed using the unique wing markings of C. palaemon to detect the movements and lifespan of individual butterflies photographed during timed counts at Fineshade Wood. Population size was estimated annually by a POPAN model using PMR data and tested against encounter rates generated from C. palaemon timed count data to determine the reliability of this sampling method. In addition, over 3500 new historic C. palaemon records were collected from museums and other sources of uncollated data and added to the existing BNM dataset. Extinction trajectories were generated to identify a pattern of decline in England that started approximately a decade earlier than the 1960s, in the late 1940s-early 1950s. Spatiotemporal variables tested for association indicated that colonies at larger sites, and larger sites in metapopulation networks (<2km apart) were buffered against extirpation to a greater extent than more isolated colonies at smaller sites.
A global review of butterfly reintroductions found that reintroduction had been attempted in 394 cases in the UK and Ireland, 69 in Europe, 48 in North America, and 15 in the rest of the world (526 total). When considering cases only with definitive outcomes (348 cases), 36.8% reported reintroduction success. The UK and Ireland had the largest number of successful cases (87) and Europe the highest percentage of successful cases (40.7%). Abundance and density of primary C. palaemon nectar source bugle Ajuga reptans on woodland rides was found be positively correlated with adult female C. palaemon encounter rates. Butterfly species richness and abundance was higher on managed versus unmanaged woodland transects. An increase in survey effort through moth trapping associated with Back from the Brink – Roots of Rockingham was considered responsible for increases in moth species richness and abundance.
PMR enabled us to detect that individual adult C. palaemon moved up to 1.76km from initial capture point using a ride-level measurement technique, and five of 30 C. palaemon photo-recaptured between 2019-21 (16.7%) moved a total distance >1km between captures, belying the sedentary reputation of the species. Gross population size was estimated at 314 in 2019, 332 in 2020, and 721 in 2021. Statistically significant correlation coefficients between daily C. palaemon timed count encounter rates and daily population size estimates generated from PMR data were only found when 2019-21 data was combined. Broad agreement between model estimates and C. palaemon encounter rates increased confidence in the accuracy of population size estimates that can be generated using less-intensive sampling methods such as timed counts.
The results of this thesis show the importance of provision of suitable habitat within woodland through wide rides, good landscape permeability and site connectivity within landscapes to support reintroduced populations of C. palaemon in England. The value of museum and other sources of uncollated data for describing the historic distribution, abundance, and timings of decline of endangered or extinct UK butterfly species is also demonstrated. In conclusion, given habitat is being restored across Rockingham Forest networks to improve suitability for C. palaemon and the mobility of photo-recaptured individual butterflies at Fineshade Wood is encouragingly high, there is reason to be optimistic about the future of C. palaemon in England.
... Threatened plants herein defined as those species that have been holistically assessed using Version 3.1 of the IUCN's Red List Categories and Criteria and consequently awarded the conservation status as either, Vulnerable (VU), Endangered (EN) or Critical Endangered (CR) (IUCN, 2012;Williams et al., 2013;Dzerefos et al., 2017;Du et al., 2018;Bamigboye & Tshisikhawe, 2020). Some scholars consider threatened plant species of high conservation concern (Keller & Bollmann, 2004;van Swaay et al., 2011;Tiawoun et al., 2018;Tiawoun et al., 2020). South Africa has endorsed many strict regulations to help conserve threatened plant species at the national level. ...
Scientific evidence suggests that threatened plants are disappearing at an alarming rate. Over the last decades, government spending in the fight against species extinction risk has immensely increased, exceeding US$7.1 billion annually. However, the rate of species extinction worldwide is rapidly increasing, with no indications of slowing down soon. Scientific scholars, including botanists, ethnobotanists, economic-botanists, conservationists, and anthropologists, share a mutual interest in using indigenous knowledge for livelihoods, scientific and economic growth. As a result, there is a growing interest in indigenous knowledge research, particularly the research fields involving plant species utilization and conservation. Given that recent scientific evidence suggests that such studies are lacking in South African Biosphere Reserves, there is a burning need to critically review the literature about threatened plant species utilization, conservation status, and distribution in the Vhembe Biosphere Reserve. The literature search was conducted using various keywords in various electronic databases. The review findings demonstrate that Brackenridgea zanguebarica, Prunus africana, Rhychosia vendae, and Warbugia salutaris were being utilized for medicinal purposes in the Vhembe Biosphere Reserve, and their conservation status range from Vulnerable to Critical Endangered. So far, none of the literature studies conducted in the Vhembe Biosphere Reserve has specified the ailments that P. africana, R. vendae, and W. salutaris treat. The results revealed that many literature studies had reported on the distribution of threatened plant species in the Vhembe Region, at the national level or elsewhere. However, none of these studies have incorporated spatial information related to the exact locality of the species, except for B. zanguebarica. This review provides insights above utilized threatened plant species, their conservation statuses, and distribution in the Vhembe Biosphere Reserve.
Keywords: Conservation status; Extinction; Indigenous knowledge; Threatened plant utilization; Vhembe Biosphere Reserve.
... As a consequence, insect conservation has often been motivated largely by fragmentation and small geographic ranges (Diniz-Filho et al., 2010;Samways, 2007). Exceptions to that pattern include a few European countries where studies of butterflies and a small number of other insect groups have been sufficiently thorough in terms of natural history and monitoring that researchers have been able to prioritize species for conservation attention in a way that follows the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Red List framework (Bonelli et al., 2018;Fox et al., 2011;Franke et al., 2022;Maes et al., 2012;van Swaay et al., 2011). That depth of species-specific information for insects is unusual, even for butterflies, and most countries will have a more complex mix of some monitoring or observational data, natural history observations, and expert opinion (Edge & Mecenero, 2015;Geyle et al., 2021;New et al., 1995). ...
Ongoing declines in insect populations have led to substantial concern and calls for conservation action. However, even for relatively well studied groups, like butterflies, information relevant to species‐specific status and risk is scattered across field guides, the scientific literature, and agency reports. Consequently, attention and resources have been spent on a minuscule fraction of insect diversity, including a few well studied butterflies. Here we bring together heterogeneous sources of information for 396 butterfly species to provide the first regional assessment of butterflies for the 11 western US states. For 184 species, we use monitoring data to characterize historical and projected trends in population abundance. For another 212 species (for which monitoring data are not available, but other types of information can be collected), we use exposure to climate change, development, geographic range, number of host plants, and other factors to rank species for conservation concern. A phylogenetic signal is apparent, with concentrations of declining and at‐risk species in the families Lycaenidae and Hesperiidae. A geographic bias exists in that many species that lack monitoring data occur in the more southern states where we expect that impacts of warming and drying trends will be most severe. Legal protection is rare among the taxa with the highest risk values: of the top 100 species, one is listed as threatened under the US Endangered Species Act and one is a candidate for listing. Among the many taxa not currently protected, we highlight a short list of species in decline, including Vanessa annabella, Thorybes mexicanus, Euchloe ausonides, and Pholisora catullus. Notably, many of these species have broad geographic ranges, which perhaps highlights a new era of insect conservation in which small or fragmented ranges will not be the only red flags that attract conservation attention.
... While some have argued that, under limited financial resources, funds directed towards conservation actions should take precedence over gathering basic ecological information (Whitten et al. 2001, Grantham et al. 2009), this view has been challenged (Lyles & May 1987, Sutherland et al. 2004, IUCN SSC 2013, Walsh et al. 2015, Toomey et al. 2017, Wood et al. 2018. Such challenges are justified, given that we often do not have enough information to determine which species are declining and at what rate or whether they should be listed as threatened or endangered (van Swaay et al. 2011, Swan et al. 2016, Taylor et al. 2017, IUCN 2019. ...
Understanding the natural history and ecology of endangered species is critical for developing effective, evidence-based conservation and management plans. The mottled duskywing Erynnis martialis is a skipper butterfly inhabiting oak savanna, oak woodlands, alvars, and tallgrass prairie habitats containing their host plants, Ceanothus spp. Listed as endangered in Canada, few populations persist in Ontario and Manitoba, but there are no formal estimates of population size or what influences spatial variation in adult density, and we have limited knowledge of phenology. To address these knowledge gaps, we conducted spatially explicit mark-re-sighting over multiple years at 2 of the largest known populations in Ontario (specific locations withheld). Population sizes at Site A were estimated to be 1159 individuals (confidence limit [CL] = 845-1598) in 2021 and at Site B, 626 individuals (CL = 466-851) in 2020 and 2227 individuals (CL = 1110-4463) in 2021. Most (81%) re-sightings occurred within 5 d of marking, suggesting that adults likely live less than 1 wk. High densities of adults were generally associated with high Ceanothus spp. abundance and open canopy, but relationships varied by site and year. Peak flight across sites and years ranged from 5-13 June. We recommend that existing and prospective habitat managers prevent succession with brush-cutting and/or prescribed burns, specifically in areas of abundant Ceanothus spp. This work provides valuable information for future management and recovery efforts, including planned translocations to both historically occupied and newly restored sites.
... The IUCN criteria were primarily developed for terrestrial vertebrates and their application for most invertebrate taxa, as well as for some other aquatic organisms, is often difficult, as has been discussed by various authors (e.g. Cardoso et al. 2011;van Swaay et al. 2011;Régnier et al. 2015a;Cowie et al. 2017a;Torres-Florez et al. 2018;Lopes-Lima et al. 2021;Cowie et al. 2022). Régnier et al. (2009) used information available on the IUCN Red List, as well as specialist knowledge to estimate levels of extinction of non-marine molluscs worldwide and considered 19 South American non-marine molluscs as "Extinct" (11 as possibly extinct ("EX?"), 3 EW, and 5 EX). ...
South America is a high biodiversity continent with five out of 13 countries considered megadiverse. Many major groups within this fauna exhibit high diversity, including non-marine molluscs. With at least 1401 known species, South American molluscs are seriously understudied. The aim of this paper is to review the conservation status of non-marine molluscs in South America, pointing out significant gaps in knowledge and suggesting possible future directions. According to the most recent IUCN Red List only 231 South American non-marine molluscs have been evaluated, with 84 (36%) categorized as Data Deficient. The main knowledge gaps are in taxonomic inventory, especially in unexplored areas, information about current and historic distributions and population sizes, and basic ecological information. Implementation of integrative taxonomy, ecological and distributional studies, exploration of areas and groups as yet largely ignored, development of researcher networks and improvement of public and political awareness and concern about these important and diverse animals are necessary actions for conservation of non-marine molluscs in South America to have any chance of success.
... en=42605 and LepiNet France http://www.lepinet.fr/lep/), the status and trend of the species in potential source areas (e.g. from van Swaay et al., 2011), and the occurrence of suitable breeding habitat in GB within likely reach of immigrants. Where a rescue effect was predicted, the provisional threat status of the species was downgraded by one category. ...
Regular reassessment of extinction risk is critical to prioritise conservation action during the current period of rapid, anthropogenic biodiversity change.
Butterflies are a flagship group for insect monitoring and conservation, as they are highly visible, well studied and exhibit rapid responses to environmental change. Here, we use systematic population monitoring data from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme and citizen‐science derived occurrence records to provide an updated assessment of extinction risk in Great Britain (GB) by applying current International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) criteria to 62 butterfly species.
The resulting regional Red List categorises four species as Regionally Extinct, 24 (41% of the remaining, extant species) as threatened (8 Endangered and 16 Vulnerable), 5 (9%) as Near Threatened and 29 (50%) as Least Concern. Recent reduction in population size (Criterion A) based on smoothed, long‐term time series of abundance and occurrence data, was responsible for most of the threatened or Near Threatened categorisations.
While the status of some species improved, likely due to conservation efforts, the revised Red List demonstrates an ongoing deterioration in the status of GB butterflies, with a 26% increase in threatened species since the previous assessment.
A greater proportion of butterflies was classed as threatened than for most other GB taxa. While this may stem from greater data availability for butterflies than most other groups (thus allowing tests of extinction risk against more criteria), it highlights the need to reinvigorate conservation efforts for these charismatic insects.
... In this context, the latest Red List of European Butterflies (van Swaay et al., 2010) classifies 37 out of 435 assessed species (9%) as threatened (3 critically endangered, 12 endangered, and 22 vulnerable) and 44 species (10%) as near threatened. However, this is considered a conservative estimate (van Swaay et al., 2011) and further studies are required in order to evaluate in more detail the status of these species. ...
Although both positive (expansion of thermophilous species) and negative effects (retraction of cold‐adapted species) have been attributed to global warming, range shifts may be constrained by the ecological traits of species.
This can be especially true for highly specialised organisms like the Spanish Greenish Black‐tip ( Euchloe bazae ), an Iberian endemic specialist of semiarid steppes with a debated taxonomic and conservation status.
Here, we first seek to clarify the taxonomic status of this butterfly and its populations by using multilocus phylogenetic inference. Then, we update its distribution range and employ ecological niche modelling, combined with other sources of data, to re‐evaluate its conservation status.
Our results confirm E. bazae as a well‐differentiated species with one of the most restricted distribution ranges among the European butterflies.
We demonstrate that its two disjunct populations, regarded as subspecies, are genetically differentiated and should be treated as independent management units.
Climate models under two future emission scenarios suggest an increase of the area climatically suitable. However, the suitability of the areas currently occupied is estimated to decrease, meaning that rapid range shifts could be required for the survival of the species.
Given the presumably low dispersal capabilities of E. bazae , its current restricted distribution, high degree of population fragmentation (divided in two distant populations), low intrapopulation genetic variability, decline in extension and abundance, low densities, high yearly fluctuations, and numerous threats to its habitat, we consider that their populations are extremely fragile and we propose to consider it ‘Endangered’ [EN B1ab(i,ii,iii,iv); B2ab(i,ii,iii,iv)].
... For instance, the arthropods classified in threat categories in Chile are incorporated into national environmental impact assessments, and previous monitoring is required for public or private projects that may affect the ecosystems there. The integration of invertebrate LRLs into the global assessment of the IUCN has been proposed by several authors (Cardoso et al. 2011a;van Swaay et al. 2011;Maes et al. 2019). In this paper, we propose that the IRL homologates these assessments of Neotropical arthropods for three main reasons: (1) LRLs represent a unique opportunity to assess endemic species, improving the representativeness of small countries, especially the Caribbean islands, and increasing the representation of threatened species from the Neotropical region by up to 300% in the IRL; (2) LRLs have a greater diversity of taxa that are not represented in the IRL for the Neotropical region, such as Schizomida, Opiliones, Amblypigi, Scorpiones, Chilopoda, and Diptera, which represent 22.78% (n = 121) of our results; (3) we found a low percentage (5.76%; ...
Neotropical efforts for arthropod conservation are still insufficient. Some species from the Neotropical region have been assessed by the IUCN Red List criteria (IRL), while others have been assessed using local red lists (LRLs). Unfortunately, these two lists are completely unconnected, even when they use similar criteria to evaluate extinction risks. Therefore, an overview of arthropod conservation using the IRL and LRLs to determine general and common patterns for arthropods in the Neotropical region is still missing, and this was the main goal of our study. The LRLs provided significant information about the species under threat in the Neotropical region, particularly on endemic ones. Both the IRL and LRLs determined that habitat loss (agricultural use land than more 50%) is the most critical threat of arthropod diversity in this region, but other main threats were also found. The conservation efforts for arthropods in Neotropical countries have been developed heterogeneously. Special efforts are necessary to countries without red lists as large countries, islands, or island-like bioregions. So far, the most threatened arthropod diversity in the Neotropical region belongs to the Caribbean islands. Insect conservation is not just about red-listing. It is also crucial to conduct conservation action as habitat management and restoration, citizen science or specific policy to fight the illegal trade. The integration of LRLs with the IRL helped identify common threats to arthropod conservation and also facilitated the macroscopic evaluation of this topic. It is crucial to conserve Neotropical arthropods to protect animal biodiversity.
Implications for insect conservation
The homologation of the LRLs in the IUCN would increase the representation of endemic arthropods generating (1) an increase in funding for research and (2) for local conservation policies such as ecological restoration, and their use as bioindicators of environmental impact on investment projects in agriculture, mining, forestry, and urbanization.
... The obtained data could indicate that in order to conduct the unbiased estimation of protected area conservation value, we should consider all Red Data Book species in a region instead only species included in the Red Data Book of Russian Federation. Different authors (van Swaay et al. 2011;Khapugin et al. 2017b;Kestemont 2019) highlighted the high significance of intra-national (i.e. regional) estimations of conservation value of species in order to obtain conservation status at the national level. ...
The main task of protected areas is biodiversity conservation primarily concerning threatened species of plants and animals. Their value is the greater, the higher number of threatened species populations is located in this area. In Russia, conservation of species included in the Red Data Book of Russian Federation (hereafter-Russian Red Data Book plant species), has the highest priority. In this paper, we studied Russian Red Data Book plant species, known in ten protected areas of Volga Federal District (European Russia). We estimated the number of Russian Red Data Book plant species per protected area; Representativeness Index of each species per protected area; proportion of Russian Red Data Book species populations of which are being studied in protected areas; rarity categories of each plant species according to regional Red Data Books. We found out that in studied protected areas 29 Russian Red Data Book plant species are known. In different regions, populations of 6.7% to 60.0% of all Russian Red Data Book plant species are present in the studied protected areas. At the same time, Representativeness Index of these plants varied from 0.67% (Cypripedium calceolus, Bolshaya Kokshaga State Nature Reserve) to 78.6% (Thymus cimicinus, Khvalynsky National Park). Population-based studies of Russian Red Data Book plant species have not been carryed out for all of them in studied protected areas. The situation is the most favorable in Bolshaya Kokshaga State Nature Reserve and National Park 'Smolny', because population-based studies cover all Russian Red Data Book plant species known in these territories. In Khvalynsky National Park and Mordovia State Nature Reserve, population-based studies cover more than 50% of all Russian Red Data Book plant species known in these protected areas. There are no data on population characteristics of Russian Red Data Book plant species in National Park 'Chavash Varmane' (Cephalanthera rubra) and Vishersky State Nature Reserve (Calypso bulbosa, Sedum roseum). The obtained data allow us to make some recommendations concerning investigations of threatened plant species in protected areas. Firstly, we recommend to organize systematic (optimally-annual) investigations of Russian Red Data Book plant species in each protected area. Secondly, population-based studies should cover at least one population of each Russian Red Data Book plant species in protected areas. Thirdly, the obtained and analyzed data on threatened plant species should be published in journals available to wide scientific audience to avoid the loss of data.
... In particolare si dovrebbe evitare la loro messa a coltura, favorire il pascolo evitando, però, il pascolo mal gestito o eccessivo (sovrapascolo), la riforestazione, la cementificazione o l'asfaltatura e il taglio a raso ripetuto della vegetazione erbacea, che purtroppo viene effettuato per motivi estetici proprio nel periodo primaverile-estivo, quando questi lepidotteri sono in piena attività e, quindi, sono più vunerabili. Queste misure gestionali risultano di grande importanza in considerazione del fatto che nel Senese i Carcharodus sono apparentemente presenti con popolazioni poco abbondanti e quindi ad alto rischio e che due delle tre specie, C. floccifer e C. lavatherae, sono considerate di rilevante interesse conservazionistico, essendo considerate "Near Threatened" in Europa (van Swaay et al., 2010(van Swaay et al., , 2011 e che lo stesso C. lavatherae è ritenuto poco abbondante e in declino nella Lista Rossa dei Ropaloceri Italiani (Balletto et al., 2016). ...
The genus Carcharodus Hübner, 1819 in the province of Siena (Tuscany) (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Hesperioidea, Hesperiidae)] The genus Carcharodus Hübner, 1819 in the province of Siena is represented by three species: Carcharodus alceae (Esper, [1780]), Carcharodus floccifer (Zeller, 1847) and Carcharodus lavatherae (Esper, [1783]). C. alceae is widespread; attends mostly natural grasslands and pastures, between a minimum of 165 m and up to 890 m altitude, with flight time between the first two weeks of April and the first fortnight of October. C. flocciferus is poorly distributed; attends mostly natural grasslands and pastures, between a minimum of 165 m and a maximum of 850 m above sea level, with flight time between the first two weeks of May and the first fortnight of October. C. lavatherae is rare; attends mostly natural grasslands and pastures, between a minimum of 165 m and a maximum of 750 m altitude, with flight time between the first two weeks of May and the first two weeks of August. For the protection of the populations of these species, it is advisable to keep natural grasslands, pastures, fallow plots and marginal areas, such as road and railway embankments, disused quarries, former industrial land and bands of respect of cemeteries.
... The IUCN's listing criteria is utilized globally for guiding species assessments across many jurisdictions because it provides a standardized, transparent approach that is continually subjected to improvement (Rodrigues et al., 2006;Miller et al., 2007;Brito et al., 2010;van Swaay et al., 2011;Collen et al., 2016). Betts et al. (2020) recently demonstrated that the IUCN red list achieved many conservation outcomes including improving legislation and ensuring conservation action within countries. ...
Threatened species lists are important policy tools for species conservation, and they are often used to help prioritize recovery actions. Current listing processes, such as the IUCN red list threat assessment, rely on accepted correlates of extinction risk, especially population size. Population size appears to be an effective indicator for threatened vertebrate species, but it is less relevant for invertebrate species, where population sizes are rarely known. Furthermore, many invertebrate species are dependent upon a host species for survival and reproduction, and thus host population sizes would be better indicators of (co-)extinction vulnerability. Improving listing criteria to be relevant to invertebrates is important, because faunal biodiversity consists predominantly of invertebrate species (>98%) and invertebrates likely represent a majority of the current global sixth mass extinction event. Here, we propose including the degree of host specificity of a dependent invertebrate species to threatened host species as an additional correlate of extinction proneness, where there is a continuum from generalist dependents to dependents that are completely specialized to use a single host species per life stage. For highly specialized dependent taxa, we recommend that that threat category assigned to the dependent species should match the threat category assigned to the host species. Incorporating this correlate of extinction risk into threatened species policy, such as the IUCN red list, could rapidly increase the rate of assessments for many invertebrates and justify their inclusion, where previously they may have been considered data deficient.
... Two of the extinct species were last recorded in the mid-20th century. One of them, Nymphalis vaualbum, shows a negative trend across Europe (Kudrna et al. 2011, van Swaay et al. 2011. Another one, B. freija, may have suffered from irrigation of raised bogs in the mid-20th century. ...
The distribution of butterflies was mapped throughout entire Estonia in 2016 and 2017. Butterflies were surveyed during three phenologically targeted visits at more than 1200 pre-selected sites. In total, over 180 000 individuals belonging to 97 species were recorded. We compare the resulting distribution maps with historical records, and discuss changes in the species' distribution. We conclude that, within the time frame of century, the changes in the Estonian butterfly fauna were moderate. For about 75% of species, there was no conclusive evidence of a change in distribution or abundance. In case of the remaining 25%, there were more butterfly species with an increasing rather than a decreasing trend in abundance and/or distribution. Some but not all of those changes could be associated with ongoing climate change. The decline of several dry-meadow specialists can be regarded as the most urgent conservation concern.
... For example 12 , reported that there are 29 terrestrial species of mammals, reptiles and amphibians endemic to the EU and threatened with extinction that are not included in the annexes, while 82% of the vertebrates listed are not considered threatened at the global level (IUCN). Similar issues have also been described for other comprehensively assessed taxa, such as some insects 17 , butterflies 18 or dragonflies 19 . The achievement of the Biodiversity Strategy could be compromised by the low representation of threatened species in the mentioned annexes 19 , which adds to the weak improvement in the conservation status of listed species. ...
In the last decades the EU has made substantial efforts implementing conservation strategies to halt biodiversity loss. However, little improvement has been reported. Given the proximity of the 2020 landmark set by the EU Biodiversity Strategy and the Convention for Biological Diversity, alternatives to reduce this conservation gap and prospect future strategies must be assessed urgently. Here, we explore how the current Natura 2000 could be used to enhance management of terrestrial and freshwater threatened vertebrates. We identified Natura 2000 sites to increase the coverage of threatened species as target species under two alternative scenarios: a policy-driven approach including only threatened vertebrates listed in the Directives; and a conservation-driven approach, including all the remaining threatened vertebrates. We show that representation of threatened vertebrates in Natura 2000 could be improved by updating lists of target species in less than 1% and 3% of sites in the policy-driven and conservation-driven scenarios, respectively. We highlight the strength of Natura 2000, with sites that complement each other and could contribute to achieving more ambitious conservation targets under future strategies. Prioritisation exercises like this could help realise the potential of this network and enhance the management of threatened species and improve current gaps.
... For example studies showed the quality of data strongly affect the list of taxa selected for nature conservation. For example expert knowledge may better explain the extinction risk of EU butterflies than coarse scale grid cell data (van Swaay et al., 2011). Other studies underlined that prioritizing procedures at different spatial scales may produce mismatches between EU and national Red Lists (Maes et al., 2019), but multi-national programmes may help to make nature conservation more efficient (see Kark et al., 2009). ...
Prioritizing species for nature conservation should follow objective ecologically and biogeographically meaningful selection criteria. In this study, we test an approach to prioritize butterfly species for nature conservation considering the following parameters: (1) geographical distribution and endemicity, (2) vulnerability and (3) ecological specialization. Following these criteria, we identified 51 species of conservation priority out of the 403 European species assessed, that is 12.7%. This list of species and those included in the annexes II and IV of the Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) had only four species in common. The species selected by both approaches differed significantly in their traits considering their distribution and ecological specialization with the annexes of the EU Habitats Directive including many species that are neither range‐restricted nor have their core distribution within Europe, and furthermore many not threatened ecological generalists. Our results suggest that species prioritization for nature conservation should follow objective criteria, such as distribution and ecological specialization.
... The occurrence of Maculinea butterflies in small, patchy populations, which are naturally vulnerable to extinction [53], together with changes in land use over the last century, have led to rapid declines of many populations and extinctions in several European countries [54,55]. All Maculinea species in Europe were considered as vulnerable to global extinction in the first European data book for butterflies [56] and although F o r R e v i e w O n l y many have been reclassified in the latest version [57], declines have continued in many countries [58]. An understanding of the ant host use of Ma. arion in the U.K. has proven critical in both working out why it became extinct [54] and in its successful reintroduction [59]. ...
The range of hosts exploited by a parasite is determined by several factors, including host availability, infectivity and exploitability. Each of these can be the target of natural selection on both host and parasite, which will determine the local outcome of interactions, and potentially lead to coevolution. However, geographical variation in host use and specificity has rarely been investigated. Maculinea (= Phengaris ) butterflies are brood parasites of Myrmica ants that are patchily distributed across the Palæarctic and have been studied extensively in Europe. Here, we review the published records of ant host use by the European Maculinea species, as well as providing new host ant records for more than 100 sites across Europe. This comprehensive survey demonstrates that while all but one of the Myrmica species found on Maculinea sites have been recorded as hosts, the most common is often disproportionately highly exploited. Host sharing and host switching are both relatively common, but there is evidence of specialization at many sites, which varies among Maculinea species. We show that most Maculinea display the features expected for coevolution to occur in a geographic mosaic, which has probably allowed these rare butterflies to persist in Europe.
This article is part of the theme issue ‘The coevolutionary biology of brood parasitism: from mechanism to pattern’.
... as raised bogs are absent or very rare in this part of Europe (Janssen et al. 2016). As a mire specialist, C. tullia is classified as a Species of European Conservation Concern with the highest conservation priority (SPEC1), meaning that its population size reduction over the last 10 years is greater than 30% (van Swaay et al. 2011). Population decline is mostly due to range retraction because of habitat loss and degradation (van Swaay et al. 2006), mainly as a consequence of land drainage and afforestation (Bubova et al. 2015). ...
Knowledge of the ecology of pre-adult stages of an organism at its species’ range margins is a prerequisite for conserving species, especially for understanding its responses to future climate changes. Largely sedentary premature life stages require specific living conditions within a relatively small area. Such conditions are created by vegetation structure heterogeneity and a microclimate gradient, generated by varying microtopography. We investigated the microhabitat selection patterns of egg-laying females and overwintering caterpillars of peatland butterfly Coenonympha tullia relative to vegetation composition, water quantity and microclimatic conditions across microtopographic zones of transition mire at the species’ southern range margin. We showed that (1) small-scale variability in mire microtopography determines oviposition site selection and larval presence; (2) microhabitats of pre-adult stages were largely confined to the intermediate microtopographic zone of the transition mire (flats); (3) egg-laying females and overwintered larvae preferred microsites with high coverage of main hostplants (Trichophorum alpinum, Carex lasiocarpa, C. limosa, C. panicea), and those with more humid and cooler summertime conditions than on hummocks; (4) females and larvae avoided shallow hollows permanently filled with water. The vegetation structure of flats enables the females to select spots with sufficient humidity for egg development, and allows the larvae to change their location according to suitable thermal and moisture conditions. We also discuss poor prospects for species in view of impacts of future climate changes on mire ecosystems.
... Although P. clodius is not currently threatened, it faces similar issues to those of the related European Apollo butterfly (Parnassius apollo), which has been declining throughout the twentieth century due to long-term climatic changes, habitat succession, anthropogenic factors, genetic erosion, and behavioral changes in small demes (Nakonieczny et al. 2007). P. apollo is categorized by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as Near Threatened (van Swaay et al. 2011) and is considered a high priority for conservation (Todisco et al. 2010). Parnassius species, known as the "invertebrate epitome of the conservation of mountain habitats" in Europe, are considered a valuable study organism and can serve as a flagship species for montane environments (Todisco et al. 2010). ...
Estimating occupancy patterns and identifying vegetation characteristics that influence the presence of butterfly species are essential approaches needed for determining how habitat changes may affect butterfly populations in the future. The montane butterfly species, Parnassius clodius, was investigated to identify patterns of occupancy relating to habitat variables in Grand Teton National Park and Bridger-Teton National Forest, Wyoming, United States. A series of presence–absence surveys were conducted in 2013 in 41 mesic to xeric montane meadows that were considered suitable habitat for P. clodius during their flight season (June–July) to estimate occupancy (ψ) and detection probability (p). According to the null constant parameter model, P. clodius had high occupancy of ψ = 0.78 ± 0.07 SE and detection probability of p = 0.75 ± 0.04 SE. In models testing covariates, the most important habitat indicator for the occupancy of P. clodius was a strong negative association with big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata; β = − 21.39 ± 21.10 SE) and lupine (Lupinus spp.; β = − 20.03 ± 21.24 SE). While P. clodius was found at a high proportion of meadows surveyed, the presence of A. tridentata may limit their distribution within montane meadows at a landscape scale because A. tridentata dominates a large percentage of the montane meadows in our study area. Future climate scenarios predicted for high elevations globally could cause habitat shifts and put populations of P. clodius and similar non-migratory butterfly populations at risk.
... Many farmland birds use cropped habitats for foraging, for example, whereas for nesting they require a variety of non-cropped patches or non-agricultural habitat features, such as hedgerows, shrubby patches, forest edges, semi-natural grasslands or even just isolated trees and bushes (Vickery and Arlettaz, 2012). Similarly, grasslands and mosaics of shrub vegetation, as well as hedgerows within intensively managed farmland, represent the most important habitats for butterflies and spiders, including rare and endangered species (Schmidt et al., 2008;van Swaay et al., 2011). Duelli and Obrist (2003) have shown that more than 63% of arthropod species within intensively managed farmland depend on semi-natural habitats. ...
Introduction
Heterogeneity in composition and spatial configuration of landscape elements support diversity and abundance of flower-visiting insects, but this is likely dependent on taxonomic group, spatial scale, weather and climatic conditions, and is particularly impacted by agricultural intensification. Here, we analyzed the impacts of both aspects of landscape heterogeneity and the role of climatic and weather conditions on pollinating insect communities in two economically important mass-flowering crops across Europe.
Methods
Using a standardized approach, we collected data on the abundance of five insect groups (honey bees, bumble bees, other bees, hover flies and butterflies) in eight oilseed rape and eight apple orchard sites (in crops and adjacent crop margins), across eight European countries (128 sites in total) encompassing four biogeographic regions, and quantified habitat heterogeneity by calculating relevant landscape metrics for composition (proportion and diversity of land-use types) and configuration (the aggregation and isolation of land-use patches).
Results
We found that flower-visiting insects responded to landscape and climate parameters in taxon- and crop-specific ways. For example, landscape diversity was positively correlated with honey bee and solitary bee abundance in oilseed rape fields, and hover fly abundance in apple orchards. In apple sites, the total abundance of all pollinators, and particularly bumble bees and solitary bees, decreased with an increasing proportion of orchards in the surrounding landscape. In oilseed rape sites, less-intensively managed habitats (i.e., woodland, grassland, meadows, and hedgerows) positively influenced all pollinators, particularly bumble bees and butterflies. Additionally, our data showed that daily and annual temperature, as well as annual precipitation and precipitation seasonality, affects the abundance of flower-visiting insects, although, again, these impacts appeared to be taxon- or crop-specific.
Discussion
Thus, in the context of global change, our findings emphasize the importance of understanding the role of taxon-specific responses to both changes in land use and climate, to ensure continued delivery of pollination services to pollinator-dependent crops.
There are original data of the current state of Nymphalidae family in the regions of Western Ukraine in this article. The entomological materials were collected during the own expedition and the teacher training of the students of the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology of Ternopil Volodymyr Hnatiuk National Pedagogical University. The insects were collected during 2021. The species composition of the diurnal butterflies was conducted. The taxonomic affiliation of the insects was carried out, using modern books of determinants of insects, the atlases and online sources. The list of species of Nymphalidae family is formed according to Nieukerken et al. (2011). The collection of the entomological material was carried out according to the norms of the environmental legislation. These insects are in the collections of The Botany and Zoology Department. The insects were collected in Zakarpattia, Lviv, Volyn, Rivne, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, Chernivtsi and Khmelnytskyi regions. The species composition of the collected insects was analysed. 13 species of Nymphalidae family were identified in the studied regions. We studied 80 individuals of Nymphalidae family. The investigated insects belong to 11 genera: Coenonympha Hübner, Maniola Schrank, Aphantopus Wallengren, Melanargia Meigen, Vanessa Fabricius, Inachis Hübner, Agalis Dalman, Polygonia Hübner, Araschnia Hübner, Issoria Hübner and Argynnis Fabricius. We identified that some species of Nymphalidae family are common in Ukraine. The largest number of individuals of this family was calculated. The most popular were Maniola jurtina L., Vanessa atalanta L. and Inachis io L. There were several individuals of Araschnia levana L., Issoria lathonia L. and Argynnis aglaja L. in the entomological collection. We will conduct the systematic entomological studies of the fauna of Ukraine in order to do a detailed analysis of Nymphalidae family and to do the ecological and faunal inventory of the insects. These data can be used for the further analysis of the changes of species diversity of Nymphalidae family.
Understanding how species respond to human activities is paramount to ecology and conservation science, one outstanding question being how large-scale patterns in land use affect biodiversity. To facilitate answering this question, we propose a novel analytical framework that combines Environmental Niche Models, multi-grain analyses, and species traits. We illustrate the framework capitalizing on the most extensive dataset compiled to date for the butterflies of Italy (106,514 observations for 288 species), assessing how agriculture and urbanization have affected biodiversity of these taxa from landscape to regional scales (3–48 km grains) across the country while accounting for its steep climatic gradients.
Multiple lines of evidence suggest pervasive and scale-dependent effects of land use on butterflies in Italy. While land use explained patterns in species richness primarily at grains ≤ 12 km, idiosyncratic responses in species highlighted “winners” and “losers” across human-dominated regions. Detrimental effects of agriculture and urbanization emerged from landscape (3-km grain) to regional (48-km grain) scales, disproportionally affecting small butterflies and butterflies with a short flight curve. Human activities have therefore reorganized the biogeography of Italian butterflies, filtering out species with poor dispersal capacity and narrow niche breadth not only from local assemblages, but also from regional species pools.
These results suggest that global conservation efforts neglecting large-scale patterns in land use risk falling short of their goals, even for taxa typically assumed to persist in small natural areas (e.g., invertebrates). Our study also confirms that consideration of spatial scales will be crucial to implementing effective conservation actions in the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. In this context, applications of the proposed analytical framework have broad potential to identify which mechanisms underlie biodiversity change at different spatial scales.
The past century has witnessed an explosion of anthropogenic activity, resulting in land use and climate changes on a global scale. The study of butterflies provides a unique window into the biological impacts of these changes. In this chapter, we explore several case studies that demonstrate the power of butterflies, both as model organisms in theory development and as ecological sentinels in conservation practice. These studies demonstrate how research on butterfly phenology, distribution, and diversity has yielded important insights into the interacting effects of habitat loss, fragmentation, and degradation on natural populations, as well as ecological and evolutionary responses to changing climatic conditions. Further, an important avenue for future research harnesses the power of whole-genome sequencing of butterfly populations to better document and help ameliorate biodiversity loss. Continued collaboration and knowledge transfer between dedicated amateurs and professional researchers, facilitated by humanity’s innate appreciation of butterflies, will be essential to our continuing efforts to stem the catastrophic loss of biodiversity that is generally associated with natural habitat modification and large-scale shifts in climatic conditions.
• Climate change is causing shifts in the distribution of many species and populations inhabiting mountain tops are particularly vulnerable to these threats because they are constrained in altitudinal shifts. Apennines are a relatively narrow and low mountain chain located in Southern Europe, which hosts many isolated populations of mountain species. The butterfly Erebia pandrose was recorded for the last time in the Apennines in 1977, on the top of a single massif (Monti della Laga).
• We confirmed the presence of a small, isolated population of E. pandrose in the Apennines, at a distance of more than 400 km to any other known populations. Then, we examined the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 mitochondrial DNA marker of this species across the Palaearctic area and estimated the potential decline over the Alps and the Apennines due to future climatic changes.
• The Apennine population represents an endemic lineage characterised by eight mutations over the 658 bp analysed (1.2%). In the Alps and Apennines, this species has shifted uphill more than 3 m per year since the end of the 19th century and more than 22 m per year since 1995. Species distribution models suggested that these mountain populations will experience a generalised loss of climatic suitability, which, according to our projections, could lead to the extinction of the Apennine population in a few decades.
• Erebia pandrose has the potential to become a flagship species for advertising the risk of losing unique fractions of genetic diversity for mountain species.
Hydrothermal vents are rare deep‐sea oases that house faunal assemblages with a similar density of life as coral reefs. Only approximately 600 of these hotspots are known worldwide, most only one‐third of a football field in size. With advancing development of the deep‐sea mining industry, there is an urgent need to protect these unique, insular ecosystems and their specialist endemic faunas. We applied the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) Red List criteria to assess the extinction risk of vent‐endemic molluscs with varying exposure to potential deep‐sea mining. We assessed 31 species from three key areas under different regulatory frameworks in the Indian, West Pacific, and Southern Oceans. Three vent mollusc species were also examined as case studies of different threat contexts (protected or not from potential mining) to explore the interaction of local regulatory frameworks and IUCN Red List category assignment. We found that these assessments were robust even when there was some uncertainty in the total range of individual species, allowing assessment of species that have only recently been named and described. For vent‐endemic species, regulatory changes to area‐based management can have a greater impact on IUCN Red List assessment outcomes than incorporating additional data about species distributions. Our approach revealed the most useful IUCN Red List criteria for vent‐endemic species: criteria B and D2. This approach, combining regulatory framework and distribution, has the potential to rapidly gauge assessment outcomes for species in insular systems worldwide.
In this study we apply a new monitoring1890 technique for butterflies in order to get more insights into the habitat use patterns of Erebia christi Rätzer (Nymphalidae: Satyrinae). This European endemic is a rare and very localized butterfly species, found alongside steep slopes in a restricted area in the Alps, at the border between Italy and Switzerland. Even though it was discovered almost 140 years ago, captivating the interest of many lepidopterists, there are still several aspects about the biology of E. christi that are not fully known. We selected two monitoring sites in Veglia–Devero Natural Park, Italy and tested whether E. christi was more likely to use rocky, almost vertical slopes than other types of habitat. Since this habitat was almost inaccessible to humans, we used the single rope access technique, in which field operators rappelled down the slopes to explore the rock faces. We demonstrate that the main characteristics of the typical habitat of E. christi are indeed very steep rock faces with grassy ledges where Festuca sp. plants are present. We also show that, E. christi is more abundant than it was previously thought, with populations that could probably be structured in a metapopulation system. Long-term monitoring with the rope access technique could represent an optimal method to provide key insights into the biology and ecology not only of E. christi but of other butterflies that use similar habitats. Finally, we propose the upgrading of its IUCN category from Vulnerable to Endangered at European level.
Implications for insect conservation
Our findings demonstrate how appropriate, long-term monitoring can contribute to improve the scarce knowledge of the ecology of an elusive species, and to devise informed proposals regarding the management and protection of populations, especially for species of conservation concern.
Butterfly assemblages of meadows in the Transcarpathian part of the Bereg plain were studied in three consecutive years (2012-2014) with standard transect walks in 6 different sites (14 transects). In different types of dry, semi-dry and humid meadows more than 6500 individuals of 66 species were observed. The mostly disturbed dry pasture has shown the lowest, and the less disturbed semi-dry and humid meadows surrounded by natural forests have shown the highest species numbers and diversity (Shannon-Wiener). Considering the faunal types, the widely distributed, generalist Euro-Siberian species predominate, with significant presence of Holo-Mediterranean and southern Continental elements, however. The list contains some species of European nature conservation significance (Lycaena dispar, Lopinga achine). In 2014 both the species and individual number of butterfly have shown a sizeable decrease in connection with the early summer aridity. The most radical decrease was observed in species which need some higher level of humidity.
In this study we investigate the environmental factors influencing butterfly communities and evaluate the Natura 2000 network’s effectiveness in representing butterfly species richness and abundance, taking as a case study the island of Cyprus. We sampled butterflies and 11 environmental factors in 60 randomly selected sites across four 500-m elevation zones, representing seven habitat types. Rural mosaics and riverine vegetation were the habitats with the highest diversity of butterflies. Within habitats, the number of flower heads was the most important factor favouring butterfly species richness and abundance and endemic butterfly richness, while soil humidity had a positive effect on species richness and abundance. Although the Natura 2000 network succeeds in including the majority of butterfly species and all Cyprian endemics, the transects sampled within the network did not support more butterfly species than those outside it, and were significantly poorer in terms of butterfly abundance and endemic butterfly species richness and abundance. We found a similar pattern for the Habitats Directive priority habitats, which held poorer overall and endemic butterfly communities than the other habitats. The effectiveness of existing protected area networks may need to be reassessed in regions such as the South East Mediterranean, to ensure that regionally important components of biological diversity are adequately protected. To this aim, our results suggest that new European and national policies as well as further inclusion of rural mosaics and riverine habitats in protected area networks are needed for effective butterfly conservation in Cyprus.
Species inventories represent a key instrument by which the biodiversity of an area can be better understood and are essential in developing optimal management plans for conservation. We present an annotated checklist of the butterfly fauna (Lepidoptera, Papilionoidea) of the Special Area of Conservation Alpi Veglia – Devero – Monte Giove, in the northwestern Italian Alps. The checklist represents the result of research carried out by the authors from 2003 to 2018. We identified 107 species (36.9% of the entire Italian butterfly fauna), eight of which are reported for the first time in the study area. Four species (Erebia christi, Maculinea arion, Parnassius apollo, P. mnemosyne) represent taxa of conservation concern that are included
in the European Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC. We recorded a notable percentage (12.2%) of Alpine endemic species and a high number of species of the genus Erebia (17 species, 15.9%), including two highly localized Alpine endemics: E. christi and E. flavofasciata. We report new localities for these two species, discuss in more detail 19 species of particular interest, and for all species we provide information about
their distribution and conservation status in the study area.
Open-pit mining activities cause great damage to the local ecosystems. It is therefore necessary to assess and recover the vegetation status to maintain ecological stability. In this study, the Floristic Quality Index (FQI) was used to assess the vegetation habitat and the structural equation model (SEM) was applied to quantify the influences of different environmental factors on FQI in the Kunyang open-pit phosphate rock mine in Yunnan Province, China. Non-metric multidimensional scaling analyses revealed that great differences of vegetation community composition existed in the sampled plots, even those at similar distances to mining areas, which indicates that disturbing distance was not the only factor to determine the vegetation community. SEM results showed that Cu promoted the FQI most obviously (0.84), followed by Co (0.75), while the inhibition of Cd content in soil to the FQI was the most significant (−0.88), followed by TK (−0.82), and C (−0.79). Soil fertility quality and soil pollution indexes were also established to analyze the effects of comprehensive soil parameters on FQI. The results showed that the soil fertility quality index had a strong negative effect on FQI, which revealed that higher levels of TP, TN, TK, and other nutrients in the soil would produce ‘toxicity’ to the growth of vegetation. Findings from our study could provide a scientific method for assessing the ecological restoration results in the mining area.
Males of several animals, including insects, use acoustic signals to attract a sexually receptive conspecific
partner. In the orthopteran chorusing genus Poecilimon (Tettigoniidae), male signalling as well as female
preference can be related to male body condition and to the social environment. Song is thought to be an
honest signal of male quality, and song characteristics are therefore often important for sexual and social
selection. At the same time, signal expression is plastic and this plasticity depends on the quality of the
individual signaller, the acoustic components preferred by females and rivals' body condition and
proximity. Using the bushcricket species Poecilimon ampliatus as a model, we investigated how both
internal (body condition) and external (level of competition) factors affected the expression of temporal
song characteristics. We show that both factors significantly affected acoustic signalling activity: when
competing against light rivals, heavy males adjusted the characteristics of their songs to different social
conditions. However, light males competing against a heavy rival showed less plasticity in their acoustic
signals across social conditions. During the most escalated competition, heavier males increased their
acoustic signal investment up to the maximum level, signalling with longer verses and higher duty
cycles, in comparison to all other treatments. Body condition and the social environment affected male
acoustic signal activity, which suggests that these factors mediate the allocation of resources for sig-
nalling and different strategies adopted in competition. The adaptive plasticity of acoustic signals in this
species raises new questions about the potential role that this process could play in natural choruses,
where more than two competitors are signalling simultaneously.
The Italian biodiversity is among the richest in Europe. In particular, the Italian butterfly fauna includes almost 300 native species, and within the Euro‐Mediterranean area is second in species richness only to Turkey. Italy, however, has suffered from the lack of suitable instruments to evaluate the extinction risk of individual butterfly species on the basis of internationally recognised standards.
We have been working to create the first Italian Red List for butterflies. The achievement of this goal was divided into three actions: (i) the institution of a network of experts on butterfly conservation; (ii) the evaluation of the extinction risk for all Italian butterfly species; (iii) the integration of the baseline information provided by the Italian Red Lists of other taxa crucial for future evaluations of biodiversity trends in Italy.
Assessments of extinction risks were based on the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria following their most updated guidelines and were discussed during workshops involving experts from different Italian regions. All native Italian butterflies were included in the evaluation. The whole national population of each species was evaluated, including those on large and small islands.
Of 289 butterfly species assessed, one has become Regionally Extinct recently. Threatened species are 18 in total, corresponding to 6.3% of the species assessed. The majority of Italian butterfly populations are stable.
The main threats to Italian butterflies are natural reforestation, as a consequence of rural land abandonment, agricultural intensification and climate change for species living at high altitude.
Using a standardised questionnaire, a total of 415 students from two different Swiss primary schools, grammar schools and agricultural schools as well as students from a Swiss University of Applied Sciences were asked about their attitudes towards 27 different indigenous wildlife animal species. In the questionnaire, six mammal, five bird, two reptile, four amphibian and ten insect species, all with potential flagship quality, were individually presented on a colour photograph without any further background information. The participants were also asked to give individual reasons for species-related affinity or antipathy. In addition, it was ascertained whether they were able to correctly identify and name each species.The survey shows a heterogeneous pattern, whereby butterflies, birds and most mammals are, on average, more higher appreciated than reptiles, insects (excl. butterflies) and amphibians. Furthermore, it becomes evident that attitudes do not only depend on the species themselves, but also on other factors, particularly the type of educational institution attended. In general, there is no significant difference in attitudes to animals between males and females. At species level, females show significantly higher affinity for 'loveable animals' and a lesser degree of affinity for 'fear-relevant animals'. Respondents seem to show higher affinity for species they can identify than for unfamiliar species. The authors postulate that providing targeted background information in educational institutions might help soften rigid thinking patterns by strengthening appreciation for less attractive animals.
IUCN categories of threat (Endangered, Vulnerable, Rare, Indeterminate, and others) are widely used in "Red lists' of endangered species and have become an important tool in conservation action at international, national, regional and thematic levels. The authors present proposals to redefine categories in terms of the probability of extinction within a specific time period, based on the theory of extinction times for single populations and on meaningful time scales for conservation action. Three categories are proposed (critical, endangered, vulnerable) with decreasing levels of threat over increasing time scales for species estimated to have at least a 10% probability of extinction within 100 yr. -from Authors
We illustrate the strong decrease in the number of butterfly species in Flanders (north Belgium) in the 20th century using data from a national butterfly mapping scheme. Nineteen of the 64 indigenous species went extinct and half of the remaining species are threatened at present. Flanders is shown to be the region with the highest number of extinct butterflies in Europe. More intensive agriculture practices and expansion of house and road building increased the extinction rate more than eightfold in the second half of the 20th century. The number of hot spots decreased considerably and the present-day hot spots are almost exclusively in the northeast of Flanders. Species with low dispersal capacities and species from oligotrophic habitats decreased significantly more than mobile species or species from eutrophic habitats. We discuss these results in a northwest European context and focus on concrete measures to preserve threatened butterfly populations in Flanders.
In the Climatic Risk Atlas of European Butterflies by Settele et al. (2008) some errors occurred for which we apologize and herewith present the corrections.
1. Land-use change in 450 ha in southern Sweden between 1814 and 2004 was recorded. Butterflies and burnet moths were surveyed in 1904-1913 and 2001-2005. 2. We explore if local extinctions were related to land-use changes and species attributes. 3. Land use changed drastically over the 190-year period, and the largest relative change occurred for hay meadows with late harvest, which decreased from 28% to 0%. The area changed from grasslands and grazed forests to being dominated by timber forests. Previous open grazed mixed woodlands changed to spruce plantations with clear-cuts. 4. Of the 48 resident butterfly and burnet moths found a century ago, 44% have become extinct. The extinct Aporia crat oe gi, Colias palaeno, and Leptidea sinapis were abundant 100 years ago and had their highest densities in flower-rich glades in forest, a habitat which no longer exists. 5. The butterfly extinctions could be predicted from species-specific attributes as a short flight length period (P 0.02), narrow habitat breadth (P < 0.02), small distribution area in Europe (P = 0.033) and possibly larvae food plant nitrogen class (P < 0.06). In a multiple logistic regression, the flight length period was the only significant variable because the independent variables were intercorrelated. 6. We conclude that the most important factor explaining the high extinction rate is that flower-rich habitats have disappeared from both woodlands as well as from open farmlands. The most sensitive species are specialised species with a short summer flight which have gone extinct. Only the most unspecialised species still persist in the current landscape.
National red lists of threatened animal and plant species prepared according to the criteria of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) adequately reflect the extinction risk of species within a country but cannot be used directly to set conservation priorities. In particular, the significance of national populations for the conservation of the species as a whole is not taken into account. We present a procedure that can be used to assess national responsibility based on the national red-list status of a species, the international impor-tance of the national population, and the species' "historical rarity" status. We distinguished five responsibility classes for breeding birds: B1, threatened species with internationally important populations in Switzerland; B2, threatened species with internationally less important populations; B3, nonthreatened species with inter-nationally important populations; B4, nonthreatened species with internationally less important populations; and B5, species that have never been common in Switzerland. Two responsibility classes were distinguished for birds occurring in Switzerland as visitors: G1, species with large concentrations in Switzerland and an unfavorable conservation status in Europe, and G2, species with large concentrations in Switzerland and a favorable conservation status in Europe. Two additional classes (G3 and G4) for visiting species occurring in internationally less important numbers are possible but were not analyzed in detail. Responsibility classes B1, B2, B3, G1, and G2 were defined as species of national conservation concern. We developed the method for birds in Switzerland, but it can be used in other countries and for other taxonomic groups as well. It is particularly suitable where national red lists are established according to IUCN guidelines.
In metapopulations of butterflies inhabiting transient forest openings, the dynamic character of biotopes prevents unequivocal delimitation of habitat patches, complicating analyses of inter-patch dispersal. We analyse mobility of one such metapopulation, using mark-recapture data on an endangered butterfly, the scarce fritillary Euphydryas maturna, at its last site in the Czech Republic. The butterfly inhabits woodland clearings, its population numbered 190 individuals in 2002. We modelled movements in eight habitat patchworks delimited according to different criteria and superimposed over the forest, using the Virtual Migration model. Resulting mobility parameters were generally robust against patchwork definitions, the main distinction was between patchworks based on presence of adults and consisting of small patches and patchworks based on distributions of larval nests and consisting of large patches. Emigration constant decreased towards the latter, whereas males suffered higher migration mortality than females in the former. Patchworks delimited according to presence of adults performed better than patchworks based on distribution of larval nests. A comparison of our parameters with those found for the species in Finland showed that the Czech butterflies were more prone to leave individual patches and suffered higher migration mortality, which combined into considerably shorter survival. We conclude that transferring dispersal parameters among different regions and populations is more risky than using less suitable definitions of habitat patches within single region.
This paper represents a work in progress by the World Conservation Union (IUCN). Earlier drafts of the work have appeared in IUCN publications, but the “International Issues” section of Conservation Biology seems an appropriate and important place to publish the penultimate version of the document. Comments on this issue in general or on the approach taken by the IUCN should be sent to the authors directly.
Joshua Ginsburg
We describe a rapid extirpation of a strong population of globally threatened butterfly, Colias myrmidone, from the White Carpathians, Czech Republic. The area is renowned for a high plant and insect diversity associated with savannah-like
Carpathian meadows, traditionally managed by mowing once a year and subsequent autumn grazing. Although many meadows fell
victim to land consolidation schemes in the 1970s and 1980s, over 2000 hectares have been preserved in a dense network of
reserves. The reserve management practised since the mid-1990s has consisted of uniform machine mowing of entire areas and
this was further accelerated after accession of the Czech Republic to the EU, when agri-environmental schemes (AES) required
two cuts per year. This starkly conflicted with the life history of C. myrmidone, because both spring and autumn cuts interfere with larval development. Despite intensive surveys, only five and then two
C. myrmidone individuals were seen in the area in 2005 and 2006, respectively, rendering the species effectively extinct. Conservation
authorities failed by neglecting early warning signals issued by amateur entomologists, and by ignoring the basic tenets of
conservation of insect diversity, such as the need to maintain heterogeneity of resources. Unless AES provide for this crucial
aspect of habitat suitability for invertebrates, they may turn from a great hope into a massive failure.
The compilation of the Red Lists of butterflies in Flanders and the Netherlands was based on two criteria: a trend criterion (degree of decline) and a rarity criterion (actual distribution area). However, due to the large difference in mapping intensity in the two compared periods, a straightforward comparison of the number of grid cells in which each species was recorded, appeared inappropriate. To correct for mapping intensity we used reference species that are homogeneously distributed over the country, that have always been fairly common and that did not fluctuate in abundance too much during this century. For all resident species a relative presence in two compared periods was calculated, using the average number of grid cells in which these reference species were recorded as a correction factor. The use of a standardized method and well-defined quantitative criteria makes national Red Lists more objective and easier to re-evaluate in the future and facilitates the comparison of Red Lists among countries and among different organisms. The technique applied to correct for mapping intensity could be useful to other organisms when there is a large difference in mapping intensity between two periods.
The overarching aim of the atlas is to communicate the potential risks of climatic change to the future of European butterflies. The main objectives are to: (1) provide a visual aid to discussions on climate change risks and impacts on biodiversity and thus contribute to risk communication as a core element of risk assessment; (2) present crucial data on a large group of species which could help to prioritise conservation efforts in the face of climatic change; (3) reach a broader audience through the combination of new scientific results with photographs of all treated species and some straight forward information about the species and their ecology. The results of this atlas show that climate change is likely to have a profound effect on European butterflies. Ways to mitigate some of the negative impacts are to (1) maintain large populations in diverse habitats; (2) encourage mobility across the landscape; (3) reduce emissions of greenhouse gasses; (4) allow maximum time for species adaptation; (4) conduct further research on climate change and its impacts on biodiversity. The book is a result of long-term research of a large international team of scientists, working at research institutes and non-governmental organizations, many within the framework of projects funded by the European Commission.
Each chapter may be browsed/downloaded from the links below:
0. COVER, TITLE PAGE, CONTENTS [PDF, 608 KB]
A. CLIMATE CHANGE, BIODIVERSITY, BUTTERFLIES, AND RISK ASSESSMENT [PDF, 208 KB]
B. METHODOLOGY [PDF, 516 KB]
C. CLIMATE RISKS OF EUROPEAN BUTTERFLY SPECIES. Introduction and Hesperidae [PDF, 5.6 MB]; Papilionidae [PDF, 1.61 MB]; Pieridae [PDF, 5.0 MB]; Lycaenidae, Riodinidae, Libytheidae [PDF, 12 MB]; Nymphalidae, Danaidae [PDF, 21.2 MB]; Non-modelled species and summary [PDF, 328 KB]
D. DISCUSSION OF METHODOLOGICAL LIMITATIONS [PDF, 572 KB]
E. OUTLOOK: CLIMATE CHANGE AND BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION [PDF, 228 KB]
F. APPENDICES, REFERENCES AND INDEX [PDF, 424 KB]
Full-color paperback (EURO 59.00) and/or hardback (EURO 89.00) versions may be ordered at info@pensoft.net.
Determinants of Within-Patch Microdistribution and Movements of Endangered Butterfly Coenonympha Oedippus (Fabricius, 1787) (Nymphalidae: Satyrinae)
The within-patch microdistribution and movements of adults of the critically endangered butterfly, Coenonympha oedippus , were studied using mark-recapture data from an isolated patch network, which consisted of 8 patches in central Slovenia. The impact of patch characteristics on both parameters was analyzed. Males fly longer distances and spend more time flying than females. The distances and seasonal pattern of male movements were dependent on the patch size, and on the microdistribution and density of freshly emerged (receptive) females. The spatial and temporal pattern of female microdistribution was influenced by vegetation height, the homogeneity of host plant stands and the shading of the ground and/or the lowest parts of herb layer. In the case of near continuous distribution of host plants within a patch, the structure of herb vegetation appears to be the major determinant of adult microdistribution. It affects the dynamics of butterfly emergence and the selection of oviposition sites. The per cent cover of the nectar plant, Potentilla erecta , does not play an important role in butterfly microdistribution.
Geographical range size is a key ecological variable, but the consequences of measuring range size in different ways are poorly understood. We use high-resolution population data from British butterflies to demonstrate that conventional distribution maps, widely used by conservation biologists, grossly overestimate the areas occupied by species and grossly underestimate decline. The approximate flight areas occupied by 20 out of 45 colonial British species were estimated to cover a median of only 1.44% of the land surface within occupied regions. Common species were found to be declining faster than conventional distribution maps suggest: common and rare species had no significant difference in their population-level rates of extinction. This, combined with the log-normal form of the range-size frequency distribution, implies that species-level extinction rates may accelerate in the medium to long term. Population-level conservation is a matter of great urgency for all species, not just for the rarest.
Mollusks are the group most affected by extinction according to the 2007 International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, despite the group having not been evaluated since 2000 and the quality of information for invertebrates being far lower than for vertebrates. Altogether 302 species and 11 subspecies are listed as extinct on the IUCN Red List. We reevaluated mollusk species listed as extinct through bibliographic research and consultation with experts. We found that the number of known mollusk extinctions is almost double that of the IUCN Red List. Marine habitats seem to have experienced few extinctions, which suggests that marine species may be less extinction prone than terrestrial and freshwater species. Some geographic and ecologic biases appeared. For instance, the majority of extinctions in freshwater occurred in the United States. More than 70% of known mollusk extinctions took place on oceanic islands, and a one-third of these extinctions may have been caused precipitously by introduction of the predatory snail Euglandina rosea. We suggest that assessment of the conservation status of invertebrate species is neglected in the IUCN Red List and not managed in the same way as for vertebrate species.
Without robust and unbiased systems for monitoring, changes in natural systems will remain enigmatic for policy makers, leaving them without a clear idea of the consequences of any environmental policies they might adopt. Generally, biodiversity-monitoring activities are not integrated or evaluated across any large geographic region. The EuMon project conducted the first large-scale evaluation of monitoring practices in Europe through an on-line questionnaire and is reporting on the results of this survey. In September 2007 the EuMon project had documented 395 monitoring schemes for species, which represents a total annual cost of about 4 million euro, involving more than 46,000 persons devoting over 148,000 person-days/year to biodiversity-monitoring activities. Here we focused on the analysis of variations of monitoring practices across a set of taxonomic groups (birds, amphibians and reptiles, mammals, butterflies, plants, and other insects) and across 5 European countries (France, Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, and Poland). Our results suggest that the overall sampling effort of a scheme is linked with the proportion of volunteers involved in that scheme. Because precision is a function of the number of monitored sites and the number of sites is maximized by volunteer involvement, our results do not support the common belief that volunteer-based schemes are too noisy to be informative. Just the opposite, we believe volunteer-based schemes provide relatively reliable data, with state-of-the-art survey designs or data-analysis methods, and consequently can yield unbiased results. Quality of data collected by volunteers is more likely determined by survey design, analytical methodology, and communication skills within the schemes rather than by volunteer involvement per se.
Environmental scientists play a key role in society's responses to environmental problems, and many of the studies they perform are intended ultimately to affect policy. The precautionary principle, proposed as a new guideline in environmental decision making, has four central components: taking preventive action in the face of uncertainty; shifting the burden of proof to the proponents of an activity; exploring a wide range of alternatives to possibly harmful actions; and increasing public participation in decision making. In this paper we examine the implications of the precautionary principle for environmental scientists, whose work often involves studying highly complex, poorly understood systems, while at the same time facing conflicting pressures from those who seek to balance economic growth and environmental protection. In this complicated and contested terrain, it is useful to examine the methodologies of science and to consider ways that, without compromising integrity and objectivity, research can be more or less helpful to those who would act with precaution. We argue that a shift to more precautionary policies creates opportunities and challenges for scientists to think differently about the ways they conduct studies and communicate results. There is a complicated feedback relation between the discoveries of science and the setting of policy. While maintaining their objectivity and focus on understanding the world, environmental scientists should be aware of the policy uses of their work and of their social responsibility to do science that protects human health and the environment. The precautionary principle highlights this tight, challenging linkage between science and policy.
Habitat degradation and climate change are thought to be altering the distributions and abundances of animals and plants throughout the world, but their combined impacts have not been assessed for any species assemblage. Here we evaluated changes in the distribution sizes and abundances of 46 species of butterflies that approach their northern climatic range margins in Britain-where changes in climate and habitat are opposing forces. These insects might be expected to have responded positively to climate warming over the past 30 years, yet three-quarters of them declined: negative responses to habitat loss have outweighed positive responses to climate warming. Half of the species that were mobile and habitat generalists increased their distribution sites over this period (consistent with a climate explanation), whereas the other generalists and 89% of the habitat specialists declined in distribution size (consistent with habitat limitation). Changes in population abundances closely matched changes in distributions. The dual forces of habitat modification and climate change are likely to cause specialists to decline, leaving biological communities with reduced numbers of species and dominated by mobile and widespread habitat generalists.
There is growing concern about increased population, regional, and global extinctions of species. A key question is whether extinction rates for one group of organisms are representative of other taxa. We present a comparison at the national scale of population and regional extinctions of birds, butterflies, and vascular plants from Britain in recent decades. Butterflies experienced the greatest net losses, disappearing on average from 13% of their previously occupied 10-kilometer squares. If insects elsewhere in the world are similarly sensitive, the known global extinction rates of vertebrate and plant species have an unrecorded parallel among the invertebrates, strengthening the hypothesis that the natural world is experiencing the sixth major extinction event in its history.
We present recent observed climate trends for carbon dioxide concentration, global mean air temperature, and global sea level, and we compare these trends to previous model projections as summarized in the 2001 assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The IPCC scenarios and projections start in the year 1990, which is also the base year of the Kyoto protocol, in which almost all industrialized nations accepted a binding commitment to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. The data available for the period since 1990 raise concerns that the climate system, in particular sea level, may be responding more quickly to climate change than our current generation of models indicates.
For the purpose of this chapter, the present central Europe consists of the following countries: the former Federal Republic of Germany, Federal Republic of Austria, Czech Republic, Republic of Hungary, Slovak Republic and the Republic of Poland (Figure 17.1).
Colias myrmidone, the Danube clouded yellow, is one of the most endangered butterfly species in Europe, and particularly in Germany, where it has suffered a dramatic decline in the last 100 years. The decline and probable extinction of this species in Germany (Bavaria) is described in detail. Oviposition behaviour and preference were studied in the Biele Karpaty Mts and surroundings, where it was shown that egg-laying on Cytisus austriacus is concentrated on the tips of fresh shoots that are neither fruiting nor flowering. Conservation of this species presents a dilemma between the need for management to produce fresh shoots for oviposition, and the high mortality that this causes in the juvenile stages. Therefore a patchy, mosaic-like management seems to be the appropriate choice.
Coenonympha oedippus, the False Ringlet is, for European lepidopterists, one of the most endangered species of butterfly. Although its geographical range extends from western France to China, european populations are fragmented, isolated, often endangered, even extinct from three countries. Its habitats (Molinion) also decrease as a consequence to human activities ; in addition, the solitary behaviour of the False Ringlet does not allow it to colonize new habitats. After an assessment of the rarity and distribution of this species, in Europe and in France, results are presented about the monitoring of two experimental stations, where an evaluation of population was made, together with a study of imaginai biology and behaviour. From these examples, it appears that only sub populations of Aquitaine region seem to be equilibrated. For the conservation of this species, in situ dispositions of conservatory management are urgently required for certain sites, but also ex situ measures associated with an assessment and monitoring of source populations.
This book outlines how to conduct a complete environmental risk assessment. The first part documents the psychology and philosophy of risk perception and assessment, introducing a taxonomy of uncertainty and the importance of context. It provides a critical examination of the use and abuse of expert judgement and goes on to outline approaches to hazard identification and subjective ranking that account for uncertainty and context. The second part of the book describes technical tools that can assist risk assessments to be transparent and internally consistent. These include interval arithmetic, ecotoxicological methods, logic trees and Monte Carlo simulation. These methods have an established place in risk assessments in many disciplines and their strengths and weaknesses are explored. The last part of the book outlines some new approaches, including p-bounds and information-gap theory, and describes how quantitative and subjective assessments can be used to make transparent decisions.
Analysis of rates of decline for butterflies in the British county of Hertfordshire, from presence/absence data in grid squares before and after 1970, showed that complete extinction took place in 66·9% of 2 km squares occupied before 1970 (average for 18 species). For 12 species of intermediate rarity, a 2 km grid resulted in estimates of decline that were on average 35% higher than estimates based on a 10 km grid, the scale at which butterflies have been mapped nationally. Even estimates of decline based on a 2 km grid are likely to be underestimates because pre-1970 records are incomplete and because 2 km grid squares still conceal declines within squares. In Plebejus argus, for which the exact location of every local population is known in North Wales, a 2 km grid would seriously underestimate declines, for example giving only a 56% loss of grid squares if 90% of local populations were to become extinct. Our results and analysis of simulated distributions indicate that: for a few of the very rarest species, declines on grid maps may closely reflect population losses; for species of intermediate rarity, grid maps identify but underestimate population losses; for common species, population losses fail to be detected on grid maps. Per-population extinction rates for butterflies of intermediate rarity, and even for some relatively or very common species, may have been as high as extinction rates for some of the rarest. Because most of the commoner species initially had many populations per grid square, their declines have been underestimated or have not been detected by existing mapping schemes. We propose a scheme for monitoring changes in the status of common as well as rare butterflies in a network of intensively mapped grid squares at different scales.
IUCN categories of threat (Endangered Vulnerable, Rare, Indeterminate, and others) are widely used in‘Red lists’of endangered species and have become an important tool in conservation action at international, national, regional, and thematic levels. The existing definitions are largely subjective, and as a result, categorizations made by different authorities diyfer and my not accurately reflect actual extinction risks. We present proposals to redefine categories in tams of the probability of extinction within a specific time period based on the theory of extinction times for single populations and on meaningful time scales for conservation action. Three categories are proposed (CRITICAL, ENDANGE-, VULNERABLE) with decreasing levels of threat over increasing time scales for species estimated to have at least a 10% probability of extinction within 100 years. The process of assigning species to categories may need to vay among different taxonomic groups, but we present some simple qualitative criteria based on population biology theory, which we suggest are appropriate at least for most large vertebrates. The process of assessing threat is clearly distinguished from that of setting priorities for conservation action, and only the former is discussed here.
In 2005 a nationwide monitoring scheme for butterflies (and diurnal moths) was launched in Germany. Coordinated by the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ, it started as an integral part of the public relations campaign "Abenteuer Schmetterling" (Adventure Butterfly) with German public television and an environmental NGO as partners. The core objectives of the monitoring scheme are (a) to provide a central element for the analysis of biodiversity and (b) to investigate and develop the role of butterflies as indicators for the state of biodiversity. Both are aims at a regional, national, and European scale. After three years of monitoring (2005-2007), first results and experiences are presented. We show that the use of multiple media (TV, internet, community-level activities) yielded high responsiveness from the public and high recruitment of volunteers. We further show that the quality of data is likely to qualify for scientific analyses of abundances and phenology and therefore possibly for the recognition of long-term trends. Main lessons learned for the successful establishment of a volunteer-based monitoring scheme are that (a) an institution that hosts such a project should be able to provide long-term basic financial and personnel resources; (b) the media can play a vital role in activating a minimum number of volunteers required to start a monitoring project; and (c) the motivation of recorders is the key for success. Therefore permanent coordination, support, motivation activities, continuous contacts with the volunteers, and continuous recruitment of new recorders are all essential to ensure regular data entry and the overall success of such a project.
Presents results from a long-term butterfly monitoring program, and reviews the ecology of British butterflies.
Butterflies and other insects have declined more rapidly than birds over parts of southwest Europe this century, and early attempts to conserve them often failed. Failure occurred mainly because reserve managers did not cater for three differences in their needs compared with those of vertebrates: (1) Many insects occupy very narrow specific niches within their biotopes, often associated with an ephemeral successional stage; (2) although an insect population can sometimes be supported by a small (<1 ha) patch of its specific habitat, an individual habitat patch may remain suitable for no more than 3–10 years and (3) several insect species are too sedentary to colonize new patches of habitat that arise farther than 300 m-1 km from old ones during the period that each remains suitable for breeding. Further complications arise from the dependency of some insects on narrow temperature bands, especially in northwest Europe where many species reach their edges of range and are locked into warm, anthropogenic habitats. The same species have broader or different niches farther south, and their habitats may require very different management across geographical ranges. Despite these problems, conservationists have had considerable success in maintaining populations of threatened insects within nature reserves, once knowledge of their ecology and dynamics was applied to site management.
1. Population viability analyses (PVA) are extremely useful tools for the management of endangered species at the landscape scale. Two main families of spatially explicit models are available to perform PVA: (i) presence–absence models, in which local populations are either existing or extinct at each generation, and (ii) structured population models, in which the dynamics of each local population are modelled. In this study we compared the usefulness of both approaches for the prediction of the persistence of a species living in a highly fragmented landscape.
2. The cranberry fritillary Boloria aquilonaris is an arctic–alpine relict species in western Europe. It lives in landscapes where altitude or the proximity of oceans provide the high humidity conditions required for the formation of peat bogs, the only habitat of the butterfly. In such landscapes, the distribution of the butterfly is fragmented, following the natural distribution of peat bogs; this fragmentation is increased by human‐induced peat bog destruction.
3. The study of the dynamics of a highly fragmented metapopulation of the cranberry fritillary in a network of 14 habitat patches totalling 26·23 ha revealed that: (i) the density at the equilibrium was c. 700 butterflies ha ⁻¹ ; (ii) local population dynamics in small populations were negative; and (iii) six estimates of the growth rate R t showed large variations even in a large population. Both local extinctions and recolonization events are likely to occur, and two sites (one of 7 ha) unoccupied during two generations were recolonized in the third year.
4. We conclude that the future of this metapopulation is not guaranteed, given its large spatial scale and unbalanced, erratic local population dynamics. We hypothesize that global warming could explain the instability of local population dynamics detected here in addition to the decline of this arctic–alpine relict species, which is currently reported in all its refuge localities in the Netherlands.
5. Presence–absence models based on metapopulation structure and habitat characteristics should provide relatively safe predictions, as the population network (14 patches) is just below the minimum amount of suitable habitat (MASH) for the long‐term persistence of a viable metapopulation. However, careful investigation of local population dynamics showed a high instability in the network, which is confirmed by population extinction at a large site.
6. Synthesis and applications. We urge conservation biologists to consider the local population dynamics of endangered species for the management of metapopulations in fragmented landscapes. In the case of the cranberry fritillary, continuing site protection is essential.
The World Conservation Union (IUCN) defined a set of categories for conservation status supported by decision rules based on thresholds of parameters such as distributional range, population size, population history, and risk of extinction. These rules have received international acceptance and have become one of the most important decision tools in conservation biology because of their wide applicability, objectivity, and simplicity of use. The input data for these rules are often estimated with considerable uncertainty due to measurement error, natural variation, and vagueness in definitions of parameters used in the rules. Currently, no specific guidelines exist for dealing with uncertainty. Interpretation of uncertain data by different assessors may lead to inconsistent classifications because attitudes toward uncertainty and risk may have an important influence on the classification of threatened species. We propose a method of dealing with uncertainty that can be applied to the current IUCN criteria without altering the rules, thresholds, or intent of these criteria. Our method propagates the uncertainty in the input parameters and assigns the evaluated species either to a single category (as the current criteria do) or to a range of plausible categories, depending on the nature and extent of uncertainties.
While there is agreement that both habitat quality and habitat network characteristics (such as patch size and isolation)
contribute to the occupancy of patches by any given species, the relative importance of these factors is under debate. This
issue is of fundamental ecological importance, and moreover of special concern for conservation biologists aiming at preserving
endangered species. Against this background we investigated patch occupancy in the violet copper Lycaena helle, one of the rarest butterfly species in Central Europe, in the Westerwald area (Rhineland-Palatinate, Western Germany). Occupied
(n=102) differed from vacant (n=128) patches in altitude, size, connectivity, availability of wind shelter, in the abundance of the larval host-plant,
in the abundance of a grass species indicating favorable habitat conditions and in the abundance of nitrophilous plants. Overall,
patch occupancy was primarily determined by patch size, connectivity and the abundance of the larval host plant, while all
other parameters of habitat quality were of subordinate importance. Therefore, our findings suggest that even for extremely
sedentary species such as L. helle habitat networks are decisive and—next to the preservation of habitat quality—need to be an integral part of any conservation
management for this species.
Lists of extinct Australian plants created over the last 20 years were examined and were shown to have high levels of turnover. In general, the lists are contracting in length and their composition changes substantially, a phenomenon we term the ‘Lazarus effect’. There is little explanation for these changes in the cryptic nature of species habits, or their distribution in remote locations. Most of the turnover is due to changes in knowledge about the species' status, and changes in taxonomy. Lists maintained in some other countries are more stable, but at the potential cost of underestimating the extent of extinction. Comparisons between jurisdictions and between lists are difficult because of different attitudes taken towards uncertainty and variation in research effort among different taxa. For any assessment that uses lists of extinct or threatened species as indicators of environmental change, we recommend that sources of bias are reduced and that uncertainties in lists are made more transparent. An important step in this process is to distinguish listing changes due to a change in status from those due to a change in knowledge about distribution, abundance and taxonomy. Assessments of environmental change based on species lists should be standardised to exclude these latter sources of variation, and take into account new assessments of previously unevaluated taxa.
Threatened species lists are designed primarily to provide an easily understood qualitative estimate of risk of extinction. Although these estimates of risk can be accurate, the lists have inevitably become linked to several decision-making processes. There are four ways in which such lists are commonly used: to set priorities for resource allocation for species recovery; to inform reserve system design; to constrain development and exploitation; and to report on the state of the environment. The lists were not designed for any one of these purposes, and consequently perform some of them poorly. We discuss why, if and how they should be used to achieve these purposes.
To organize and prioritise species-specific conservation efforts, we delineate `functional conservation units' for the threatened Alcon Blue butterfly Maculinea alcon in Belgium. We used detailed distribution data on the butterfly, its host plant and its habitat, present-day population sizes and its mobility and colonization capacity to determine functional conservation units (FCUs) on different spatial scales: FCU-1, i.e., the 12 presently occupied habitat patches plus the area within a range of 500 m surrounding them (the maximum local movement distance, based on mark-release-recapture data), FCU-2, i.e., the areas within a range of 2 km around the occupied habitat patches (the maximum observed colonization capacity) and FCU-3, i.e., potential re-introduction sites (sites where M. alcon went extinct recently). We suggest different management and planning measures for each type of functional conservation unit and discuss translocation and re-introduction as `intensive care' conservation measures for this threatened and sedentary species.
Analyses of species' population losses typically show a dichotomy between strongly affected, rare, and localized species and apparently unaffected, common, and widespread species. We analyzed 16 years (1992-2007) of butterfly transect count data from The Netherlands in a reevaluation of the trends of common, widespread species. Fifty-five percent (11 of 20 species) of these species suffered severe declines in distribution and abundance. Overall, cumulative butterfly abundance declined by around 30%. Some of the species in decline used to be omnipresent in gardens and parks, and 2 of the species were previously considered agricultural pests. Based on their declines over the last 16 years, 2 of the 20 species (Lasiommata megera and Gonepteryx rhamni) reached endangered status in The Netherlands under the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) population-decline criterion, and 2 species (Inachis io and Thymelicus lineola) met vulnerable criterion. Butterflies in farmland, urban, and particularly woodland areas showed the largest decline in species abundance. The abundance of species associated with vegetation types found mainly in nature reserves (dunes, heathland, and, to a lesser extent, seminatural grassland) increased or remained stable. The decline of widespread species requires additional conservation strategies in the wider landscape.
Charismatic groups of animals and plants often are proposed as sentinels of environmental status and trends. Nevertheless, many claims that a certain taxonomic group can provide more-general information on environmental quality are not evaluated critically. To address several of the many definitions of indicator species, we used butterflies to explore in some detail the attributes that affect implementation of indicators generically. There probably are few individual species, or sets of species, that can serve as scientifically valid, cost-effective measures of the status or trend of an environmental phenomenon that is difficult to measure directly. Nevertheless, there are species with distributions, abundances, or demographic characteristics that are responsive to known environmental changes. In this context, single or multiple species can serve as indicators when targets are defined explicitly, ecological relationships between the target and the putative indicators are well understood, and data are sufficient to differentiate between deterministic and stochastic responses. Although these situations exist, they are less common than might be apparent from an extensive and often confounded literature on indicators. Instead, the public appeal of charismatic groups may be driving much of their acclaim as indicators. The same taxon may not be appropriate for marketing a general conservation mission and for drawing strong inference about specific environmental changes. To provide insights into the progress of conservation efforts, it is essential to identify scientific and practical criteria for selection and application of indicators and then to examine whether a given taxonomic group meets those criteria.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species was increasingly used during the 1980s to assess the conservation status of species for policy and planning purposes. This use stimulated the development of a new set of quantitative criteria for listing species in the categories of threat: critically endangered, endangered, and vulnerable. These criteria, which were intended to be applicable to all species except microorganisms, were part of a broader system for classifying threatened species and were fully implemented by IUCN in 2000. The system and the criteria have been widely used by conservation practitioners and scientists and now underpin one indicator being used to assess the Convention on Biological Diversity 2010 biodiversity target. We describe the process and the technical background to the IUCN Red List system. The criteria refer to fundamental biological processes underlying population decline and extinction. But given major differences between species, the threatening processes affecting them, and the paucity of knowledge relating to most species, the IUCN system had to be both broad and flexible to be applicable to the majority of described species. The system was designed to measure the symptoms of extinction risk, and uses 5 independent criteria relating to aspects of population loss and decline of range size. A species is assigned to a threat category if it meets the quantitative threshold for at least one criterion. The criteria and the accompanying rules and guidelines used by IUCN are intended to increase the consistency, transparency, and validity of its categorization system, but it necessitates some compromises that affect the applicability of the system and the species lists that result. In particular, choices were made over the assessment of uncertainty, poorly known species, depleted species, population decline, restricted ranges, and rarity; all of these affect the way red lists should be viewed and used. Processes related to priority setting and the development of national red lists need to take account of some assumptions in the formulation of the criteria.
Resumen: La Lista Roja de Especies Amenazadas de la UICN (Unión Internacional para la Conservación de la Naturaleza) fue muy utilizada durante la década de l980 para evaluar el estatus de conservación de especies para fines políticos y de planificación. Este uso estimuló el desarrollo de un conjunto nuevo de criterios cuantitativos para enlistar especies en las categorías de amenaza: en peligro crítico, en peligro y vulnerable. Estos criterios, que se pretendía fueran aplicables a todas las especies excepto microorganismos, eran parte de un sistema general para clasificar especies amenazadas y fueron implementadas completamente por la UICN en 2000. El sistema y los criterios han sido ampliamente utilizados por practicantes y científicos de la conservación y actualmente apuntalan un indicador utilizado para evaluar el objetivo al 2010 de la Convención de Diversidad Biológica. Describimos el proceso y el respaldo técnico del sistema de la Lista Roja de la IUCN. Los criterios se refieren a los procesos biológicos fundamentales que subyacen en la declinación y extinción de una población. Pero, debido a diferencias mayores entre especies, los procesos de amenaza que los afectan y la escasez de conocimiento sobre la mayoría de las especies, el sistema de la UICN tenía que ser amplio y flexible para ser aplicable a la mayoría de las especies descritas. El sistema fue diseñado para medir los síntomas del riesgo de extinción, y utiliza cinco criterios independientes que relacionan aspectos de la pérdida poblacional y la declinación del rango de distribución. Una especie es asignada a una categoría de amenaza si cumple el umbral cuantitativo por lo menos para un criterio. Los criterios, las reglas acompañantes y las directrices utilizadas por la UICN tienen la intención de incrementar la consistencia, transparencia y validez de su sistema de clasificación, pero requiere algunos compromisos que afectan la aplicabilidad del sistema y las listas de especies que resultan. En particular, se hicieron selecciones por encima de la evaluación de incertidumbre, especies poco conocidas, especies disminuidas, declinación poblacional, rangos restringidos y rareza; todas estas afectan la forma en que las listas rojas deberían ser vistas y usadas. Los procesos relacionados con la definición de prioridades y el desarrollo de las listas rojas nacionales necesitan considerar algunos de los supuestos en la formulación de los criterios.
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the most comprehensive resource detailing the global conservation status of plants and animals. The 2004 edition represents a milestone in the four-decade long history of the Red List, including the first Global Amphibian Assessment and a near doubling in assessed species since 2000. Moreover, the Red List assessment process itself has developed substantially over the past decade, extending the value of the Red List far beyond the assignation of threat status. We highlight here how the Red List, in conjunction with the comprehensive data compiled to support it and in spite of several important limitations, has become an increasingly powerful tool for conservation planning, management, monitoring and decision making.
A World Conservation Union (IUCN) regional red list is an objective assessment of regional extinction risk and is not the same as a list of conservation priority species. Recent research reveals the widespread, but incorrect, assumption that IUCN Red List categories represent a hierarchical list of priorities for conservation action. We developed a simple eight-step priority-setting process and applied it to the conservation of bees in Ireland. Our model is based on the national red list but also considers the global significance of the national population; the conservation status at global, continental, and regional levels; key biological, economic, and societal factors; and is compatible with existing conservation agreements and legislation. Throughout Ireland, almost one-third of the bee fauna is threatened (30 of 100 species), but our methodology resulted in a reduced list of only 17 priority species. We did not use the priority species list to broadly categorize species to the conservation action required; instead, we indicated the individual action required for all threatened, near-threatened, and data-deficient species on the national red list based on the IUCN's conservation-actions template file. Priority species lists will strongly influence prioritization of conservation actions at national levels, but action should not be exclusive to listed species. In addition, all species on this list will not necessarily require immediate action. Our method is transparent, reproducible, and readily applicable to other taxa and regions.
Fluturii de zi din România. Brasov County History Museum
- L Székely
Székely, L., 2008. Fluturii de zi din România. Brasov County History Museum,
Brasov.