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State of nature in the EU

Publication Created 15 Apr 2015 Published 19 May 2015
1 min read
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Results from reporting under the nature directives 2007-2012. This report describing the state of nature in the EU is based on reports from Member States under the Birds and the Habitats directives and on subsequent assessments at EU or EU biogeographical levels. It provides comprehensive facts and figures on the status and trends of the species and habitats covered by the two EU nature directives, fully underpinned by the numerous reports submitted by Member States in 2013.
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Publication Created 15 Apr 2015 Published 19 May 2015
1 min read
Technical report No 2/2015
Results from reporting under the nature directives 2007-2012. This report describing the state of nature in the EU is based on reports from Member States under the Birds and the Habitats directives and on subsequent assessments at EU or EU biogeographical levels. It provides comprehensive facts and figures on the status and trends of the species and habitats covered by the two EU nature directives, fully underpinned by the numerous reports submitted by Member States in 2013.

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Conservation status of habitat types and species: datasets from Article 17, Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC reporting All Member States are requested by the Habitats Directive to monitor habitat types and species listed in its annexes and send a report every 6 years following an agreed format. The assessment of conservation status is based on information about the status and trends of species populations and of habitats at the level of the biogeographical or marine region.
Status and trends of bird populations: datasets from Article 12, Birds Directive 2009/147/EC reporting All Member States are requested by the Birds Directive to monitor bird species and send a report every 6 years following an agreed format. This information includes population sizes and trends (short and long term) for breeding and wintering populations, as well as pressures and threats for Special Protection Area trigger species. In addition, population status and trends are assessed at the EU level.
Archived
Status and trends of bird populations: datasets from Article 12, Birds Directive 2009/147/EC reporting The dataset contains the tabular data as reported by Member States for the periods 2008-2012 and 2013-2018; this includes population sizes and trends (short and long term) for breeding and wintering populations, as well as pressures and threats for Special Protection Area trigger species. In addition, it includes the population status and trends at the EU level as assessed under contracts from the European Commission.
Archived
Conservation status of habitat types and species: datasets from Article 17, Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC reporting All Member States are requested by the Habitats Directive to monitor habitat types and species listed in its annexes and send a report every 6 years following an agreed format. The assessment of conservation status is based on information about the status and trends of species populations and of habitats at the level of the biogeographical or marine region.

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News and articles

Nature policy works when implemented well Our natural environment is a key component of our health and wealth. However, our recent assessments show that the majority of habitats and species in Europe have an unfavourable conservation status despite significant improvements for many species in recent years.
Green Week: stakeholders put nature in the spotlight Stakeholders from across Europe are coming together at Green Week to discuss biodiversity and ecosystem services in Europe. The European Environment Agency (EEA) will present its latest findings, recently published in its reports 'State of nature in the EU' and 'The European Environment – state and outlook 2015'. To contribute to the knowledge base, the EEA released today a new technical report on mapping and assessment of ecosystems.
State of nature in the EU: biodiversity still being eroded, but some local improvements observed The majority of habitats and species in Europe have an unfavourable conservation status despite significant improvements for many species in recent years, according to a new technical report published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) today. The report presents the most comprehensive European overview on the conservation status and trends of the habitats and species covered by the European Union’s (EU) two nature directives. Building on the reports submitted by EU member states, the report contributes to policy discussions in the context of the EU 2020 Biodiversity Strategy.

Related briefings

EU protected habitats
Agricultural land: nitrogen balance
EU protected species
EU protected habitats
EU protected species
Archived
Agricultural land: nitrogen balance
Underpinning European policy on nature conservation - Revision of the EUNIS habitat classification The EUNIS habitat classification is a pan-European, comprehensive and widely accepted classification of all habitat types. The increasing need to support European policy on nature conservation with harmonised habitat descriptions, condition estimates and change assessments underpinned by field data led to the initiation of an extensive review of the classification. This briefing gives an overview of the EUNIS habitat classification and revision process of its terrestrial part through alignment with the European Vegetation units. The focus is on heathland, scrub and tundra habitat types.
EU protected species

See also

Article 17 - 2020 dataset The dataset contains tabular data as reported by Member States for the period 2013-2018; this includes habitat areas, population sizes, trends, pressures and threats, and conservation status at the national biogeographical level. In addition, it includes conservation status and trends in conservation status at the EU biogeographical level as assessed by the EEA and its ETC on Biological Diversity.
Article 17 - 2015 dataset The dataset contains tabular data as reported by Member States for the period 2007-2012; this includes habitat areas, population sizes, trends, pressures and threats, and conservation status at the national biogeographical level. In addition, it includes conservation status and trends in conservation status at the EU biogeographical level as assessed by the EEA and its ETC on Biological Diversity. Files downloaded prior to 4th of September 2015 do not include text fields with information from the general report, which are now added to the 2015 version of the database. ----- Files downloaded after mid July 2021 include the data from the delayed 2007-2012 report from Greece. These data were not originally included in the EU dataset but were substituted with Greek data from the 2000-2006 reporting period. In the latest version of 2015 dataset the substitute 2000-2006 data for Greece were replaced with the delayed 2007-2012 data. The EU biogeographical assessments for MED/MMED regions have been updated accordingly. Please note that the calculated fields with the weights used for the EU biogeographical assessment are not updated in the latest 2015 dataset (they are left blank for GR). Please note further that in the State of Nature 2015 report the MED/MMED assessments are not using the delayed GR reported data for 2007-2012.
Article 12 - 2015 technical report (tabular and spatial) Report describing the methodology of the European data set by ETC/BD.
Annex 4
Annex 3
Annex 2
Annex 1
Draft
EUNIS habitat suitability map
Flow chart
Archived
An introduction to habitats The term “habitat” has several meanings. In ecology it means either the area and resources used by a particular species (the habitat of a species) or an assemblage of animals and plants together with their abiotic environment. The focus of this introduction addresses the latter. The most comprehensive hierarchical approach for describing habitats in European ecosystems is the EUNIS habitat classification. EUNIS stands for the European Nature Information System. The definition of habitats used for the EUNIS habitat classification is: “a place where plants or animals normally live, characterized primarily by its physical features (topography, plant or animal physiognomy, soil characteristics, climate, water quality etc.) and secondarily by the species of plants and animals that live there”.
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Archived
Article 12 datasets (tabular and spatial)
Further documentation Report describing the methodology of the European data set by ETC/BD.
Article 17 dataset The dataset contains tabular data as reported by Member States for periods 2007-2012 and 2013-2018; this includes habitat areas, population sizes, trends, pressures and threats, and conservation status at the national biogeographical level. In addition, it includes conservation status and trends in conservation status at the EU biogeographical level as assessed by the EEA and its ETC on Biological Diversity.
Archived
An overview of Europe's protected areas The European Environment Agency is compiling data about protected areas in Europe via the data flows on Natura 2000 and Nationally designated areas, reported by the countries. The material and analyses presented on these pages are based on the EEA report "Protected areas in Europe - an overview" from 2012.
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