Bras, Boys & Biking: Save Our Solitary Bees

I don't know if you guys all know but our humble bee population is under serious threat? Bees are not only hugely important in the human food chain, but also CRUCIAL as pollinators of wild flowers as well as being a keystone species for biodiversity. Beekeepers and gardeners have noticed that bees are less healthy and abundant in recent years than they have been in the past. If this trend continues, it could have really serious implications. I'll try and give you some information here so you can help these guys out, yeah i know lots of people are scared of them but, they are so important.

Bees can be categorised into three broad groups as follows:

The honeybee (Apis mellifera) is a social bee that forms large colonies that overwinter. It can be kept in hives and is the source of honey and beeswax. A strong honeybee colony may contain about 60,000 bees
Bumblebees (Bombus spp.) are also social bees but their nests die out in late summer or early autumn. There are 23 bumblebee species in Britain but only about 12 are commonly seen in gardens. At peak strength in midsummer, a bumblebee nest may contain up to 200 bees
Solitary Bees - There are about 265 species of solitary bee in Britain, some of which are rare species confined to restricted habitats. Common types of garden solitary bees include some of the Andrena, Osmia, Megachile, Lasioglossum and Nomada species. Solitary bee nests are even smaller and with these non-social bees, each female constructs and provisions her nest on her own

There is no one simple answer and the problems facing the honeybee are different to those affecting bumblebees and solitary bees.

Several factors have been identified as probable contributory causes of honeybee decline. These include parasites, diseases, neglect and more recently and at the forefront of the media, pesticides. Particular concern has been raised about neonicotinoid insecticides (eg imidacloprid, thiacloprid, acetamiprid and thiamethoxam). These are systemic insecticides used by farmers and gardeners to control a wide range of pests. Attention has been focused on this group of insecticides because they came into use during the period when bee decline became apparent and these chemicals can get into nectar and pollen. Some bee poisoning incidents with neonicotinoids have occurred as a result of incorrect application by farmers but there is no clear evidence of harm being caused when the chemicals are applied correctly due to lack of data. Some research has shown harmful effects on the foraging ability of honeybees and the colony size of bumblebees. Further research is being carried out to assess the extent to which these experiments reflect the exposure that bees face when they forage in treated crops under field conditions however this pesticide is still in common use during these tests and I believe lobbying should continue to stop its use until it is proven safe given the state of the bee populations.

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In contrast, the main problems facing solitary and bumble bees are restricted to forage flower availability and in particular loss of specific habitats. The cool thing about this is we can all help by planting more 'bee friendly' plants and its pretty easy (and they can look pretty) to build and provide new habitats for them.