Wild bees and bee hotel
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For 2024 we have decided to build a few insect hotels and hang them up in our garden. Since there are fewer and fewer wild bees and bumblebees, something has to be done here too. The good thing is that everyone who has a garden can contribute to that and do something like that too.
So let's get to it!!
A bee hotel, also known as a bee house or insect hotel, is hand made structure designed to provide more or less natural nesting and sheltering opportunities for bees and other insects who do good for our nature and of course, for us, human. It is typically could be made from various natural materials, such as logs, bamboo tubes, drilled wooden blocks, and hollow reeds, arranged in a specific way to create nesting cavities, so let your fantasy to go and create something from the materials you could either find in your own garden if not then in your nearest garden shop.
Bee hotels are important because they can help support declining populations of native bees, many of which are important pollinators for flowering plants and agricultural crops. Solitary bees, unlike honeybees, do not live in colonies or hives and instead nest in individual chambers. Providing safe nesting sites encourages these bees to breed and increase their numbers.
When creating a bee hotel, it is important to use non-toxic and sustainable materials. The nesting chambers should be of different sizes to accommodate various bee species, so that reminds the work of our mother nature. The hotel should be placed in a sunny location, preferably near an area with a variety of flowers for foraging. Regular maintenance of bee hotels is also essential. Old nesting materials should be replaced annually to prevent disease buildup, and the hotel should be cleaned to remove any parasites or debris.
Overall, bee hotels are a simple and effective way to support biodiversity and pollination in our environment.
An interview with Ramona Lichtenthäler, a Planet Wild community member, who shares her knowledge about wild bees and tips on creating your own wild bee hotel
Bees are incredibly important to all life on Earth - they play a key role in maintaining biodiversity through pollination. Unfortunately, many bee species are critically endangered. Is there anything we can do about it?
One of the Planet Wild community members, Ramona Lichtenthäler, has a few practical tips for ways to protect this important insect.
PW: Ramona, you mentioned that you are passionate about wild bees and have done a few things to help them in your free time. Can you tell us more about it?
Ramona: Certainly! I can talk about wild bees for hours, so I hope you have time!
In Germany, we're home to around 580 species of wild bees. While most people are familiar with bumblebees, there are countless other lesser-known species. They come in different sizes, colors, and have diverse lifestyles. However, the sad reality is that we're losing them at an alarming rate – about half of them are now on the Red List of threatened species.
Mammals, amphibians, insects, and plants all have the capability of becoming invasive if they manage to spread in their new environment, wreaking havoc on the local ecosystem and native species that live there. Invasive species are a big problem, so what are some factors contributing to the spread of alien species and what can we do about it?
This decline isn’t just a small concern - it is a direct threat to the very foundations of our food production and biodiversity. It's like a Jenga tower: You can remove numerous blocks, but once you pull out one too many, everything collapses.
In Europe, we've already lost 75% of our once-abundant insects in the last 30 to 40 years, and they sit at the base of the food chain. So, I felt the need to start doing something.
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Thank you, friend!
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The death of bees and bumblebees is a really big problem. Beekeepers and farmers often come into conflict. Farmers can treat their plots with herbicides, and bees arriving at these sites on nectar can be poisoned. This is a global problem. At the same time, the absence of bees in nature leads to a loss of crops for farmers.
By the way, there are many bee apiaries near my house.
You are lucky if there are many bees around your house, you might have a lot of flowers with juicy pollen. It might be a good idea for you too to create such bee hotel and see how busy it will be. You already have feeding station for birds so new inhabitants of your garden :)
Пчелиный отель у меня в саду. :) Но это классная идея. Я думаю, что мне будет интересно подумать об этом. Но сделать это за пределами сада.
I wonder where 'here' is and why there aren't that many bees. We have plenty of them, same if it comes to wasps, just like beekeepers (and honey) even though the countryside here isn't filled with flowers and most people do not care about gardening.
Good luck with the project.
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