EU’s bird and butterfly populations are declining

The sustainable development goal ‘life on land’ (SDG 15) aims to protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

Eurostat regularly assesses the EU’s progress towards the SDGs. The common bird index and the grassland butterfly index are used to monitor biodiversity.

In 2024, the population of common bird species in the EU decreased by 15.1% compared with 2000. The populations of common farmland species dropped by 32.1%, while those of common forest species slowly started to recover since 2010.

Source dataset: sdg_15_60

The grassland butterfly index, which monitors the changes in abundance of 17 grassland butterfly species, estimates that butterfly populations declined by 36.5% compared with 2000.

Source dataset: sdg_15_61

This article marks the International Day for Biological Diversity, celebrated annually on 22 May.