8: Status of biodiversity in Flanders

Release date	24/08/2009

It is estimated that about 40 to 50,000 species occur in Belgium, of which 80% can be found in Flanders. 75% belong to invertebrates, 24% are plants. Birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians constitute the remaining 1%. Red Lists were produced for a number of species groups. These lists show that about one third of the species are vulnerable or extinct. The most important factor responsible is the reduction of suitable habitat. During the last century, especially nutrient poor, brackish and wet environments disappeared. It is important to (re)create sufficiently large areas of suitable habitat. Moreover, land use and the resulting environmental pressures should be tuned to the needs of the habitat requirements of the species present. The improvement of the status of vulnerable species is usually only possible by specific active restoration measures. There are practically no standardised monitoring schemes available to assess the distribution and trends of the fauna and flora, which largely hampers the formulation of policy measures. Recent trends (last 10 years) are illustrated with examples from birds, amphibians and butterflies.