Busy Bees

1 kg of honey requires bees to travel 110,000 miles – In the lifetime of one bee it may make only one twelfth of a teaspoon of honey. That’s a lot of dedication and hard work!

One in 3 mouthfuls of the food we eat relies on insect pollination for its production – Imagine a world without insects in particular bees

The loss of wildflower, hedgerows and woodland habitat, disease and pollution is causing a rapid decline (and even extinction) in the bee population.

There are 230 types of bees in the UK (not all make honey but all are pollinators) several bee species have already been lost in the UK

Bees have a remarkable communication system called the waggle dance which has recently been analysed and shows how cleverly bees returning to the hive can direct exactly where and what distance the best plants are for nectar and pollen.  See video page. or link to : https://youtu.be/12Q8FfyLLso

What can we do to help support the bees and other insects?

• Provide safe wildflower corridors, including trees, for the bees in order to sustains their journeys and colonies.

• Plant bee and insect friendly flowers, such as marigolds, buddleia and lavender in in our gardens.
• No Mow May – don’t cut your grass during May (longer if you can) to give the emerging insects and bees a chance to feed and develop on the wild grasses and flowers. In gardens, longer grass is great fun for kids to play ‘explorer’ and hide and seek.
• Set up bug hotels – Not only will they provide shelter but are fascinating to observe.  This is more a bee condominium than a hotel! If you are feeling up to this construction FREE pallets are available – just email:  info@bybrookconservation.co.uk or  through our contact us page.

A Myth Buster.

It is often said that by the laws of aerodynamics, bumble bees should not be able to fly as their wings are too short to lift their lovely little fat bodies into the air!… Of course, as if to prove science wrong, they do and they fly miles and miles.

Bees in fact have 2 pairs of wings. One pair is on display all the time and the other pair is tucked away ready to be used for flying.  In flight, the four wings create a mini hurricane effect which gives lift and keeps them airborne.

There is much more information and facts about bees to be found at :

The Soil Association:       https://www.soilassociation.org/search-results/?search=bees

WWF: For the top ten facts about bees. https://www.wwf.org.uk/learn/fascinating-facts/bees?pc=AUZ014007&gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=CjwKCAjwmeiIBhA6EiwA-uaeFUfnRzwENSAxeUKx_CnNqBXwq1rYLJI1gK-mgqUtStsNuWaR-h8IMhoCh4oQAvD_BwE

To see live inside working beehives and for a hands-on installation about bees, The Beezantium at The Newt in Somerset is a must. (entrance fees for adults are payable to The Newt – kids go free) visit : https://thenewtinsomerset.com/plan-your-visit#info_cards