I'm into my second year as a member of The Bumblebee Conservation Trust. I was considering burying a bumble bee nest box in my garden, but the other day I noticed that there is no need - the little critters have already made a nest utilising a pre-existing hole in a flower bed next to our conservatory. Now, I'm no Neil when it comes to wildlife photography, particularly as I don't currently have a sophisticated digital camera, but I've done the best I can by capturing a couple of bees in flight during the frequent trips to and from the nest.
Bumblebees are important pollinators of wild flowers and crops in the UK. Already 3 species are extinct and 9 more are threatened. No, not due to 'global warming,' but habitat loss. The Bumblebee Conservation Trust explains the problem:
"It is thus essential that we take steps to conserve our remaining bumblebee populations, and if possible restore them to something like their past abundance. This cannot be achieved with existing nature reserves. Bumblebee nests are large, containing up to 400 sterile workers, each of which travels more than 1 km from the colony in search of suitable flowers. Each nest needs many hectares of suitable flower-rich habitat, meaning that to support a healthy population which is viable in the long term, large areas of land must be managed sympathetically. UK nature reserves are simply too small. The only way to provide sufficient areas of habitat for bumblebees is if the wider farmed countryside and the vast areas covered by suburban gardens are managed in a suitable way. To do this we need to educate people...
We need to and encourage farmers to adopt wildlife friendly farming methods through uptake of the Entry Level Stewardship scheme (ELS). We need to support the replanting of hedgerows and the recreation of hay meadow and chalk grassland habitats. These activities will not be at the expense of farming, but will actually benefit it, by improving crop yields at the same time as enriching the countryside. Meanwhile, in gardens nationwide we need to use wild flowers and traditional cottage-garden plants."
A worthy cause, not tainted by the global warming bandwagon like the WWF or the RSPB, which is partly why I joined the the BBCT and am an ex-member of the RSPB.
For some professional, close up photos of bumblebees, check out the BBCT gallery.
“when our collective foot is on your collective throat” at which point we’ll put our “collective fists in your collective noses” (metaphorically speaking of course) before we all leave you with it.
Which will be soon actually.
I mean why would anyone put up with you lot – have a listen to yourselves. And you’re not getting any younger either are you?
Replacements – well Gen Y, Gen Z / Generation Einstein will all walk – the farm will be growing weeds mate. They won’t care about the consequences – they just don’t like your look.
It’s already happening …
The new Australian states Atlantis is going to stay sunk.
Sad because you have many good points in many respects but your delivery is shh$t
So won’t be any soil scientists soon – just as production revs up and move to the North is on.
Here you go http://www.asris.csiro.au/mapping/hyperdocs/SoilPolicyDiscussionApril08.pdf
The parlous state of Australian soil science. Good luck with the resource issues and thanks for all the fish - we're off to the throat doctors for some reconstruction and an easier life.
>Ecollective foot is on your collective throat.
Lovely Grott.
More pot shots without delivering. Just like a sand pit bully...waaahhhh!!!
I imagine that "one day" when we see that you are on our side will be the day when our collective foot is on your collective throat.
"we're on your side"
Yep agree.
But remember - where on your side (well sorta) - one day you'll see.
Touchy, touchy. I reported on a conversation with the nursery operator and these two clowns want to shoot the messenger. And now Lord Creepo is an expert in records management in the nursery sector, yeah, right.
There is only two core messages in all this to landowners;
1. Never, ever, do business with spivs, and
2. Run for your life whenever you hear the line "trust me, I'm from the government, I'm here to help".
>Taking pot shots when you don't have to really deliver is so much fun isn't it?
LOL!!! Well said! Perfect summary.
Oh boo hoo. Gee you guys are touchy. How hard is that? Whip up a code for each stage/issue, a number sequence for each plant, and columns for each date with Excel. Marker pen the pots. Record on a printed copy of spreadsheet what happens each week. Photocopy the sheets. Any decent research lab would do that for cents per plant. Pull the other one. Are you guys that inefficient? As usual - private enterprise whingey, touchy and inflating the figures.
And why are the plants getting damaged in re-potting? Are they total klutz's ? So if they are rough as bags and damage things they're also probably numb nuts with inventory (given it's soooo hard and expensive to keep records) - "duh - yes boss I collected all duh seed I could find but now I've lost the bag". Yea isn't good hired help hard to find eh?
And the BIG telling statement - yes nobody wanted to buy them. What an admission - they're not ornamentally attractive.
But did he attempt any marketing? Minimal marketing. Like a whiteboard saying this is the "rare Astroturfus clapposaurus being rescued from obilivion by struggling nursery artisans for your selfish urban green swill pleasure"
So your whole deceptive fetid argument stops here.
Not commercially palatable eh. Oh dear.
And you're complaining about a moderate government program to do a higher quality job putting some trees into areas where the thing grows naturally.
A decent specialist "greenie" type rainforest supplier with dreadlocks smoking ganga could have done much better. So after all this - so much for industry giving a rats.
WHICH is why we have the guvmint will all its problems doing something. And you're now whinging about the effort. Barf !!!
I tell you what mate - I would love to see you work within the system trying to undertake complex work in the agricultural/natural resource/enviro area and achieve something. Getting right up the stakeholders (even your own side) at the first meeting might make further progress a bit difficult?
Taking pot shots when you don't have to really deliver is so much fun isn't it?