CHESHIRE Wildlife Trust is calling on people to help build a picture of the status of bees in the county.
The Trust has organised a Big Garden Bee Count for this weekend, with all invited to take part.
The conservation charity has teamed up with RECORD, the Local Biological Records Centre serving Cheshire, Halton, Warrington and Wirral, which is producing a bumblebee distribution atlas for Cheshire, and wants you to record your sightings of these hard-working insects.
Most UK species have declined in recent years, and two have become extinct since 1940.
Martin Varley, director of conservation at the Trust, explained the work being undertaking to support pollinators.
He said: “Bees and other pollinators such as moths and butterflies have lost much of their habitat in the past 60 years, including a staggering 99 per cent of wildflower meadows in Cheshire. We’re taking practical action to help pollinators – we have restored meadow habitat at our reserves and are focused on restoring 100 hectares of meadow in the region in the next 10 years.
“But everyone can help and this activity creates the perfect opportunity for people to discover the bees they have in their gardens.”
“We all need pollinators in our lives,” said Martin Varley, director of conservation at the Trust.
“They are essential to food production and in maintaining a balanced ecosystem. We mustn’t take them for granted and this Big Garden Bee Count will help us to create a picture of their status in the region.”
Submit sightings at cheshirewildlifetrust.org.uk/beecount
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here