The return of a bumblebee species extinct in the UK for nearly a quarter of a century has moved a big step forward. CRS’s
Head of Environment, Richard Ball commented ‘ we often hear of species
being lost in rainforests, coral reefs and polar tundra, but it
important that we recognise native biodiversity and support project
close to us. Biodiversity can seem removed from everyday business or our
work and home life but insect pollinators such as Bees play an
important ecosystem service for us on which our agricultural economy
depends. ‘
A team of conservationists is setting off to Sweden on
a mission to collect up to 100 short-haired bumblebee queens before
releasing them at the RSPB’s Dungeness reserve in Kent later this
Spring. The project to return the bumblebee Bombus subterraneus
to the UK is a partnership between Natural England, the RSPB, Hymettus
and the Bumblebee Conservation Trust and forms part of the wider Natural
England funded Species Recovery Programme.
The short-haired
bumblebee was last recorded in the UK in 1988 near Dungeness. It
suffered declines throughout the last 60 years as a result of habitat
loss. However the species has fared much better in the south of Sweden
where, thanks to efforts of farmers, healthy populations of the bees can
be found in areas of the province of Skane. Conservationists are now
ready to begin the delicate work of transferring a small number of the
queens to new habitats in England, in the hope they will re-colonise
meadows and farmland in the south east.
Over the next two weeks,
healthy queen bees will be collected from Skane province using bee nets,
and then carefully transferred into vials. These will be placed in
refrigeration which will make the bees drowsy and induce a temporary
hibernation. The bees will return with the project team to England by
ferry before being placed in quarantine at Royal Holloway, University of
London to ensure they are free from diseases or parasites which could
affect our native wildlife.
Dr Nikki Gammans, Project Officer
added: “We have been carefully planning this expedition for months with
our Swedish colleagues - it’s very exciting now to be heading off to
collect the queens which we hope will be the first of a new UK colony.”
“This
project is about restoring a lost piece of the jigsaw for our
countryside wildlife and it is going to be a very special moment when we
finally introduce them to their new home later this year.”
Dr
Pete Brotherton, Head of Biodiversity at Natural England added: “Bees
play a vital role in the countryside and the loss of the short-haired
bumblebee serves as a stark reminder that many of our bees are in real
trouble.”
“But this species recovery project shows that when
conservationists and farmers work together we can really turn things
around. The bumblebees now have ideal habitat waiting for them in Kent,
giving them an excellent chance of re-establishing themselves. We are
really excited about their return to England - these bees belong in our
countryside and it'll be great to have them back.”
RSPB ecologist
Dr Jane Sears said: “We’ve lost 97 per cent of our wild flower meadows
in the past 60 years and this has had a devastating impact on our
precious native bumblebees.”
“Through this project we want to
show that by working together we can restore lost wildlife to our
countryside. But this isn’t just about one species – we want to create a
healthy, vibrant habitat for a whole range of insects, wild plants,
birds and other animals.”
The Bumblebee Conservation Trust’s CEO,
Dr Ben Darvill said: “In the last 70 years two bumblebee species have
become extinct and many more have declined dramatically.
They are
of course familiar and endearing garden insects but they also have a
very important role to play as pollinators. Without their free services
our flowering crops would be less productive and our wildflowers would
set less seed, leading to sweeping changes to the UK countryside.”
Source: Natural England
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