UC researcher joins IUCN European Red List of Bees assessment team
According to a new report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), to which Hugo Gaspar contributed, 10% of European wild bees (171 out of 1,928 assessed species) are now threatened with extinction — more than double the 77 species recorded as threatened in 2014, when the first assessment was conducted.
Hugo Gaspar, a researcher at the Centre for Functional Ecology: Science for People & Planet of the Faculty of Sciences and Technology of the University of Coimbra (FCTUC), is one of the authors of the second European Red List of Bees assessment, conducted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
He contributed to the assessment as an expert in the taxonomy, ecology, and conservation of wild bees in Portugal. The report shows a significant increase in knowledge about these species, but also highlights a worrying deterioration in their conservation status across Europe.
According to the new IUCN report, 10% of European wild bee species (171 out of 1,928) are now threatened with extinction — more than double the number recorded in 2014 (77) during the first assessment. One of the main achievements of this second edition was the reduction of species previously classified as Data Deficient from 57% in 2014 to just 14% in 2025, making this the most comprehensive assessment ever conducted on the conservation status of European wild bees.
Among the most affected groups are bumblebees (genus Bombus) and bees of the genera Colletes and Dasypoda. These species, along with others assessed, are crucial for pollinating wild plants and crops, playing a vital role in sustaining terrestrial ecosystems and agriculture.
Of the 171 species threatened with extinction in Europe, 67 are found in Portugal, representing 9% of the national fauna (747 species). Only one of the 25 species classified as 'Critically Endangered' in Europe occurs in Portugal: the banded bee (Epeolus fasciatus Friese, 1895), a cuckoo bee species that parasitises bees of the Colletes genus.
© DR | Paolo Rosa
“This report is further proof of the increase in knowledge, albeit limited, resulting from the investment that has been made in the study of bees in Europe in recent years,” explains Hugo Gaspar, a researcher in the Department of Life Sciences at FCTUC.
He adds, “It is important to understand that threat classification depends on the geographical context. The report recommends the development of national Red Lists of wild bees, which do not yet exist in Portugal. A species may not be classified as threatened at the European level but could be at the national level, or vice versa, which has implications for national bee conservation.”
At FCTUC and FLOWer Lab, continuous efforts are being made to conserve wild bees and other pollinators through research and action projects. These include Hugo Gaspar’s PhD thesis, which expands knowledge of the distribution and identification of wild bees in Portugal; the national PolinizAÇÃO project, responsible for the Action Plan for the Conservation and Sustainability of Pollinators in Portugal; the ARCADE project, focused on improving national reference collections; and, more recently, the European BeeConnected SUDOE project, dedicated to ecological restoration of habitats and the conservation of wild pollinators.
The newly published Red List of Bees highlights five major threats to bee conservation: 1) agricultural intensification, 2) climate change, 3) habitat loss and fragmentation, 4) invasive species and pathogens, and 5) pollution. Conservation priorities include: 1) protecting and restoring habitats, 2) promoting pollinator-friendly farming, 3) expanding monitoring and research, 4) strengthening expertise networks, and 5) integrating bee conservation into existing policies.