IUCN Red List and the Hoverfly Specialist Group

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) brings together over 1,400 member organizations and a network of more than 16,000 scientists and experts worldwide, making it the largest global organization dedicated to nature conservation and the sustainable use of natural resources. One of its key roles is to assess the extinction risk of plant and animal species. Researchers from the BioSense Institute contributed to the establishment of the IUCN Hoverfly Specialist Group in 2018, an international expert group dedicated to the study and conservation of hoverflies—one of the most important groups of insect pollinators in both natural and agricultural ecosystems. Within the framework of this group, the European IUCN Red List of hoverflies has been developed, representing the most comprehensive assessment of the conservation status of this group to date, covering nearly 1,000 species. This assessment provides insights into the main threats affecting their survival, as well as concrete recommendations for their conservation. The work of the Specialist Group continues through advancing knowledge on species distribution and ecology, developing assessment methodologies, and supporting the implementation of conservation measures, as well as the integration of these data into biodiversity conservation policies.