‘Bee cliffs’ created in Pollinator Project
A FRESH initiative from the Pollinator Project and Vale Commons Council aimed at creating nesting habitat for solitary bees and wasps has been hailed a success.
An area of badly eroded hillside at Fort Le Marchant was chosen for the pilot scheme and earlier in the spring, Pollinator Project members Barry Wells and Vic Froome created small ‘bee cliffs’ in the sandy earth banks. The area was then cordoned off to protect the fragile habitat.
Coastal soft rock cliffs provide bees, butterflies and other invertebrates with food, shelter and places to nest.
Due to its success, the scheme will be extended this autumn to add more habitats on south-facing slopes at Fort Le Marchant, ready for next year’s insects.
‘We are all becoming aware how valuable pollinating insects are, but also how they are threatened globally,’ said Pollinator Project co-founder Barry Wells.
‘We are really grateful to the Vale Commons Council for allowing us to create new habitats for these vitally important creatures and look forward to continuing this partnership in the years to come.’
Solitary bees and wasps burrow in great numbers into the bare soft cliff faces to make their nests.
Within a few weeks of the scheme, the area was already being used by silvery leafcutter bees (Megachile leachella), a species of insect with a limited distribution in Guernsey, as well as other tiny mining bees.
The sandy spoil from the digging was spread out to create nesting habitat for those bees and wasps that prefer a horizontal surface in which to dig tunnels. This has also attracted species such as the impressive European beewolf – a type of solitary wasp that digs a tunnel as deep as a metre in which to lay its eggs.
As well as improving the area for nesting, wildflowers will colonise the bare ground, providing nectar sources for the bees and wasps.
Peter Blake, chairman of the Vale Commons Council, said: ‘The council is keen to improve the biodiversity of the commons and partnering environmental charities such as the Pollinator Project in such a practical fashion is a great way of achieving our goal.’
n The Pollinator Project is a La Societe Guernesiaise initiative.
