One-sixth of species assessed in a comprehensive study on the state of UK nature is at risk of disappearing from England, Scotland and Wales. The conservation organisations behind the report are calling for an urgent expansion of nature-friendly farming schemes to halt the ongoing loss of UK wildlife.
“We’ve never had a better understanding of the state of nature in the UK and what is needed to fix it,” says Richard Gregory at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. The RSPB is a member of the State of Nature partnership that delivered the landmark report along with over 60 organisations, including The Wildlife Trusts and governmental bodies such as Natural England.
Out of more than 10,000 animal, plant and fungus species assessed for their extinction risk in Britain, the report reveals that 151 are extinct and almost 1500 are threatened with extinction. Assessments of 2508 species found in Northern Ireland found that 281 are threatened with extinction from the island of Ireland.
The abundance of more than 700 land and freshwater species in the UK has declined by 19 per cent, on average, since 1970, the study found. This average figure includes a decline in 38 per cent of land and freshwater species and an increase in the abundance of 27 per cent of these species. Among seabirds, the abundance of 13 species has fallen by 24 per cent, on average, since 1986.
According to the report, the area occupied by more than 4900 invertebrates, such as bees, ladybirds and dragonflies, dropped by 13 per cent, on average, between 1970 and 2020. For small mammals such as mice, voles and shrews, the area they inhabited shrank by 29 per cent, on average, between 1970 and 2016. The distribution of 54 per cent of flowering plants, such as heather, has also declined.
Key drivers of biodiversity loss in the UK, which is “one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world”, include intensive farming, climate change and unsustainable fishing and forestry, says Gregory.
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On a positive note, localised efforts to restore nature have led to the recovery of species such as the Duke of Burgundy butterfly (Hamearis lucina) and natterjack toads (Epidalea calamita), he says. “We just need to do it on a larger scale.”
In line with international biodiversity targets agreed in Montreal, Canada, last year, known as the Global Biodiversity Framework, the UK has agreed to restore 30 per cent of land and sea by 2030. “Taking action will be good for people’s well-being, mental health, and support healthy food, fibre and clean air,” says Gregory.
The latest report is an update on the last assessment in 2019, which found similar results, although they aren’t directly comparable, says Gregory. “The basket of nature we’re measuring now is slightly different from 2019, and the methods we’re applying now are more sophisticated as well.”
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UK will 'pause' publication of data showing biodiversity in decline
Although the latest “catalogue of catastrophe” is necessary and important, previous reports have shown much the same thing, says broadcaster Chris Packham.
“If, in four years’ time, I’m reading another one of these reports and it’s another catalogue of decline and decay, and nothing has happened, then, frankly, I and my generation of conservationists are simply not worth their salt,” he says.
On 28 September, Packham will join dozens of organisations in protests calling for stronger policies to support nature-friendly farming, fishing and forestry in the UK. “My view is that agricultural schemes that support biodiversity need to be mandatory, need massive public investment and they need to be decentralised so farmers are empowered to adapt them to their farms.”