Scientists at the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) have played a key role in shaping the UK Biodiversity Indicators 2025 through their analyses of trends in animal and plant species.
What are the UK Biodiversity Indicators?
Produced annually since 2007, the indicators track progress towards meeting national and international biodiversity targets including the Global Biodiversity Framework. They show whether different categories are improving, deteriorating or had little change in the long-term (over decades) and short-term (five years).
This year’s indicators, published by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) and the Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra), are based on data provided by nearly 100 different organisations, including government agencies, research institutes, voluntary groups. This includes valuable data from citizen science schemes such as the National Plant Monitoring Scheme, UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme and the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme.
Dr Francesca Mancini, an ecological modeller at UKCEH, said: “UKCEH plays a pivotal role in partnerships that deliver vital evidence on the status of hundreds of UK species, helping to guide policy and conservation efforts. From butterflies and pollinators to plants, invasive species and habitat connectivity, our research underpins a wide range of biodiversity indicators. This includes the status of England all-species indicator, a new indicator introduced this year.”
What do the indicators show?
In both the short and long term, more indicators are deteriorating or showing no change rather than improving, highlighting ongoing pressures on ecosystems. While some indicators have stopped worsening in the short term – hinting that declines may be slowing – none have shown actual improvement, suggesting that biodiversity loss has yet to be reversed.
Further information
Read more about the UK Biodiversity Indicators 2025 here.