Insects and Invertebrates
A citizen-science survey, led by Kent Wildlife Trust and Buglife, has found that the abundance of flying insects in the UK has plummeted by nearly 60% over the last 17 years.
The findings highlight a worrying trend and the crucial need for insect-focussed conservation research nationwide. Insects, as well as being the pollinators for our food crops, are a crucial part of the food chain for many species such as birds, bats, reptiles and amphibians. How can you help?
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Food; having a wide variety of pollen and nectar-rich plants will really help.
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Water; we can forget that all living things need water; to drink and to live in. You may not have room for a pond, but you’ve probably got room for a small bucket or barrel pond, and even a simple saucer of water will help.
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Shelter; our preference for tidiness removes the protection offered to caterpillars and moth pupae, along with spiders and all sorts of other beneficial creepy crawlies. Standing dead herbaceous matter looks stunning when frosted or sparkling with dewy cobwebs and the dead matter acts as root protection for the plants. Making bee or insect-friendly ‘hotels’ allows bees and other insects a safe place to lay their eggs and be protected from the weather, as do piles of logs or woody prunings.
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Throw out the weed & bug killers! Please don’t use pesticides, fungicides or herbicides
We've been working closely with
Buglife as part of the B-line project. Take a look at the
B-line YouTube video to find out more about about this fantastic initiative. We've established and are extending our very own
Betchworth B-line as part of this national project. Get involved!
Go to our
Re-Betchworth Bio-Diversity Project B-line page for videos and our Zoom briefings - find out how you can join in. And do check out our Re-B guides:
For a longer read, see the Re-Betchworth Biodiversity Project surveys on: