Indicator 15.61 Grassland butterfly index

The EU grassland butterfly index integrates the population trends of 17 butterfly species monitored across the EU and is calculated from data from all 27 EU Member States. The start year of national time series ranges from 1990 until 2023, therefore the index is currently presented as an EU aggregate with smoothed values. The data are integrated and provided by the Butterfly Conservation Europe, European Butterfly Monitoring Scheme partnership, EMBRACE project.

Indicator is used to monitor progress towards SDG 15 on protecting, restoring and promoting sustainable use of land which is embedded in the European Commission’s Priorities under ‘Sustaining our quality of life: food security, water and nature’.

The EU Biodiversity strategy for 2030 aims to restore degraded ecosystems and to halt and reverse the decline of pollinators. The Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive play a central role in achieveing these targets. In June 2018, the European Commission adopted the first-ever EU initiative on pollinators including butterflies. The initiative sets the framework for an integrated approach to address the problem of declining pollinators in the EU and for a more effective use of existing tools and policies.