Distribution of European mammals
Europe’s mammals are diverse!
Europe and its waters are home to at least 299 mammal species. They include the world’s tiniest mammal, the Etruscan Pygmy Shrew, which weighs just 1.8g, to the Blue Whale reading up to 199 000 kg – the largest mammal ever to have lived. More than a quarter (26.5%) of the 260 land-dwelling species are found only in Europe. Terrestrial mammal biodiversity is greatest in south-eastern Europe (the Balkan Peninsula, Hungary, and Romania) and in the mountainous regions of Mediterranean and temperate Europe. Marine mammal diversity is greatest in the Atlantic seas bordering North-western Europe and Spain, where a variety of water depths are available.
How are European mammals doing?
Conservation status
Nearly one in six (15%) of Europe’s mammal species are classed as Threatened, meaning that there is a realistic probability of extinction in the near future. A further 9% are close to being Threatened. The Aurochs (a precursor of domestic cattle) and Sardinan Pika are already globally extinct. The Grey Whale, which used to be found in the Baltic, around Iceland, and in the English Channel, is regionally extinct and survives only in the Pacific. The conservation status of marine mammals is particularly perilous, with 22% of them being Threatened, and insufficient is known about 44% to enable an assessment to be made.
Populations trends
The IUCN Mammal Assessment1 includes 231 species of mammals, of which 23 are marine.
More than a quarter (27%) of European mammal species have population declines. Because trend information is not available for a third of Europe’s mammals, many other species may be at risk. Only 8% of species are increasing, some of which have benefited from conservation actions.
99 terrestrial and 42 marine mammal species are protected through being listed in the Annexes II, IV and V of the EU Habitats Directive.
Annex II – 56 species;
Annex IV – 128 species;
Annex V – 17 species
The conservation status of these 141 species is reported by the Member States every 5 years.
According to the reports published in 2011:
- 40% of species were in Unfavourable conservation status.
- 14% of species were in Favourable (FV) conservation status.
- 46% of species had no evidence available.