Quarter of Europe’s bumblebees are at risk of extinction, study claims

Almost a quarter of Europe’s bumblebees are at risk of extinction due to loss of habitats and climate change, threatening pollination of crops worth billions, a study showed yesterday.

Sixteen of 68 bumblebee species in Europe are at risk, the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature said. It is preparing a global study of the bees, whose honeybee cousins are in steep decline because of disease.

“Of the five most important insect pollinators of European crops, three are bumblebee species,” said the union, which groups governments, scientists, and conservation groups.