Extinction Watch: Butterflies, Quolls, Parrots and Fungi
More than half of UK butterfly species are now in long-term decline, after facing their toughest year on record.
Data from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme, which has been tracking populations since 1976, shows that 51 out of 59 native species declined in 2024.
Species like the Small Tortoiseshell, Chalk Hill Blue, and Small Copper have taken particularly hard hits.
Conservation groups are urging people to take action now—starting with something as simple as letting your lawn grow wild.
This feels unnatural to many (particularly older generation gardeners) but don’t mow for six months to give butterflies (and other insects) a fighting chance - that’s the call from experts.
Unpredictable weather has played a part—wet springs and cool summers don’t help butterflies feed or breed—but long-term habitat loss is the real driver.
» Action: Read Butterfly Conservation’s advice on how you can help here.
Quolls Disappear from Queensland Hinterland
Quolls - mainland Australia's largest native carnivore - are now believed to be functionally extinct across huge stretches of Queensland.
Both the spotted-tail and northern quolls have disappeared. In recent surveys across national parks and state forests west of the Sunshine Coast, researchers couldn’t find a single quoll.
According to ecologists, that means any remaining animals are likely in numbers too low—and too scattered—to survive long-term.
Scientists are urging people to report any sightings to help map where—if anywhere—these elusive predators still exist.
Radical Lifeline for Orange-Bellied Parrot
The orange-bellied parrot, one of Australia’s most endangered birds, has only a 25% chance of surviving to 2041.
Scientists say the species has lost more than 60% of its genetic diversity over the last 200 years, and with just a few dozen birds returning to Tasmania each year, the clock is ticking.
Researchers are exploring controversial but potentially life-saving options of gene editing or hybridising with a related species, like the blue-winged parrot.
Conservationists are divided on the matter. Hybridising risks blurring genetic lines and reducing fitness. But others argue we’ve reached the point where preserving the species—even in a blended form—may be better than extinction.
» Read the report in Molecular Ecology here.
One Third of Fungi Species Now Threatened
Fungi are quietly slipping toward extinction - which would be devastating for us all.
Fungi are the planet’s silent recyclers, symbionts, and soil-makers. Their disappearance would carry heavy consequences.
The latest update from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) puts the global red list of threatened fungi species at 1,300—an increase following the assessment of 482 newly evaluated species.
Second in size only to the animal kingdom, fungi are believed to number around 2.5 million species globally. Yet just 155,000 of those have even been named.
Scientists point to the growing footprint of agriculture and urban development as a major culprit of fungi decline.
Nearly 280 fungi species are threatened by expanding farmland and cities. Another 91 are being hit by nitrogen and ammonia pollution—runoff from fertilisers and engine emissions that degrade soil and disrupt delicate ecosystems.
In Europe, the pressure is especially intense. Familiar species once common in countryside landscapes—like the fibrous waxcap—are now listed as vulnerable.
At least 198 fungi species are at risk due to logging—both legal and illegal—and forest clearance for agriculture.
Fungi form ancient underground networks that take decades, even centuries, to develop. When old-growth forests are clear-cut, those fungal webs don’t just bounce back. They’re severed—and often lost for good.