New look edition Welcome

Welcome to the summer 2012 issue of Buzzword. As you will see, the Trust is The Bumblebee continuing to grow and evolve, with ever more being done for our bumblebees, both Conservation Trust’s by us and by our conservation partners. It‟s great to see and be part of. members’ newsletter Summer 2012 — Issue 19 One change that you might well have noticed is to our „look‟. This didn't cost hundreds of thousands of pounds and will make a big difference to the breadth of our appeal, enabling us to do more to help bees. We will miss the old logo which Bees for Everyone has served us well. A big thank you to Nick Owens, who painted the beautiful Great is in full swing yellow bumblebee image. As ever, thank you for your continued support of the Trust and of bumblebees. We hope that your garden bees recover after what seems to have been a difficult and damp start to the year for many.

Dr. Ben Darvill, BBCT Chief Executive

Who we are: The Bumblebee Dr. Ben Darvill Dawn Ewing Conservation Trust is Chief Executive Officer Outreach Manager a registered charity Gill Perkins Anthony McCluskey (England & Wales 1115634, Conservation Manager Outreach Officer SC042830). We are grateful to the Jo Thornton Lee Deane following organisations Senior Conservation Development Manager for their support: Officer South West England Anne Marie Gardner Administration Manager Sam Page Conservation Officer Darren Ross East England Administration Assistant

Sinead Lynch Dr. Elaine O’Mahony Conservation Officer Surveys Officer Wales

Michelle Appleby Conservation Officer With the support of Scotland The Redwing Trust

Cover picture: Graham White bumblebeeconservation.org Issue 19 — bumblebeeconservation.org What's new? Bee mine... By Dr. Ben Darvill The long awaited (for us!) launch Stevenson MSP, Minister for of Bees for Everyone took place Environment and Climate Change, made Birds do it, bees do it, even So, how do you find a mate? In birds, at the end of May. We celebrated the speech launching Bees for Everyone educated fleas do it”. So starts males sing - grasshoppers are much the the start of this exciting project in Scotland. We were delighted to also Cole Porter’s popular song. But same. Moths rely on smell, with females with twin events in London and have George Anderson from the how do bees do it, and why? Here releasing scent (pheromone), which the Edinburgh with the help of Beechgrove Garden speak on behalf of we take a look... males fly upwind to find. What if you are prominent politicians, local our new wildlife gardening app called glued to a rock? Well, corals rely on primary school children and a Bee kind (see page 9 for further details). Many species (but by no means all) have luck. When the moon and tide are just performance artist. The Duddingston Primary School male and female forms. Have you ever right they release their eggs and sperm In London, Richard Benyon MP, Minister children were awarded for their entries to stopped and wondered why? Males don‟t into a big milky cloud, and the job is for the Natural Environment and our bee friendly garden art competition do a great deal, do they? done. Barnacles rely on physical Fisheries gave the commencement and gave another show stopping contact, and consequently males have speech, which was followed by an performance of Anneliese‟s empowering Admittedly the males of some species penises that are eight times the length have their uses. Human males, for awards ceremony for the most bee poem. of their bodies. friendly garden art created by the example, occasionally wash up, mow the schoolchildren of Stoneydown Park Thank you to everyone who helped to lawn and saw planks of wood in half. The So how do bees do it? Look closely males of many birds build the nest and Primary School. make these two launches possible. during the summer months and you will feed the chicks. Insect males do none of spot male bumblebees lazing around on The students were then led by the above. All they do is mate. Why not flowers. The males of many species Anneliese Emmans Dean in a rendition do away with them entirely? of her „political poem about have yellow faces which might help you bumblebees‟, which frankly stole the Basically, it‟s all in the genes – males are to spot one. These males don‟t seem up show! there to mix things up a bit. By to much. They certainly can‟t sing or use dispersing, finding a mate, and passing internet dating sites. The queens don‟t Two days later at the Royal Botanic on some genetic material, they help to help them either - they don‟t emit special Garden in Edinburgh, Stewart keep evolution ticking over. Successful scents or flash light signals. So how do Prof. Michael Usher and Richard Benyon MP species continually evolve (adapt) to a boy bees meet girl bees (and make Get in touch: changing environment and stay ahead in ba..bees)? the „arms race‟ with their competitors, Post Bumblebee Conservation Trust predators and parasites. So, male insects School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling have a use after all. Stirling FK9 4LA In order to mate, you need a willing partner, and this basic problem has been Phone 01786 467818 George Anderson and Stewart preoccupying males for millions of years. Stevenson MSP with the For many, this is the sole focus of their prizewinners from Duddingston Email [email protected] Primary School. simple lives. Martin Elcoate: A male of the White-tailed [email protected] bumblebee. Note the yellow hair on his face/ [email protected] nose.

bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19 Issue 19 — bumblebeeconservation.org The most common strategy here in the If she has allowed it, the two join UK is a type of scent marking. Several together via an alarming-looking male Neonicotinoid pesticides males fly in a circuit, landing from time to „clasper‟, which is designed to hold on time to smear pheromones onto objects tight, allowing a „hands free‟ union (for By Dr. Ben Darvill such as leaves, posts and grass stems. 10 to 80 minutes). - our view We think that by working together they Large areas of the UK are create a smell strong enough to attract a Paul Williams: The swathed in yellow during early queen. Different species have different „hands free kit‟ itself. A summer. This is oilseed rape, smells and preferred flying heights. Red- male clasper. which is increasingly grown by tailed, Buff-tailed and White-tailed males farmers, covering around 12% of fly around tree-tops, whereas Garden arable farmland. The flowers are bumblebees prefer waist height. visited by bees, but there are The reproductive bit is over within two concerns that all is not well. Other strategies seen elsewhere include minutes, but the male clings on to „territorial‟, and „cruising‟ – which rely on deposit a sticky liquid which hardens Oilseed rape seeds are sold dressed in The Trust recognises the need for males chasing queens. Males of these into a plug. This is designed to stop a coating of neonicotinoid pesticide. The agricultural chemicals in some farming species have massive eyes, but even other males from mating and may well pesticide is absorbed by the plant and is systems. However, we are these do not prevent errors - males often work – research suggests that few present throughout its tissues. understandably concerned by the set off in pursuit of birds and aeroplanes. queens mate more than once. Importantly, neonicotinoid residues suggestion that these 'crop protection' Union over, the queen sets off to build are also found in the pollen and nectar chemicals may be harming the Assuming that a male finds a queen, what up fat reserves for her long hibernation. and are therefore consumed by bees. pollinator populations which many happens next? Well, mating is rarely flowering crops need to ensure an optimum yield. In addition to the seen, but we think that there is some form For some time there have been economic implications of a decline in of queen choice. To allow mating, she concerns about the risks to bees from pollinators, the impacts on our much- has to move her sting up and out of the these chemicals. Recent research, has way, to avoid a painful coming together. cherished wildlife could severely impact added to these concerns. Notably, on our ability to meet binding researchers at Stirling University We know that queens prefer not to mate obligations under the Convention on demonstrated an 85% reduction in with relatives and keep their stings down Biological Diversity. queen production by colonies which had for longer as a result (a good choice; been exposed to these chemicals. inbreeding is particularly problematic for Elsa Fay du Cinema (via Twitter): With multiple People will rightly ask – “shouldn‟t bumblebees). males interested in a single queen, the sperm neonicotinoids be banned?”. The Trust plug seems a sensible strategy. In response to these findings, BBCT does not endorse the continued use of called for an immediate reassessment of neonicotinoids, but neither is it calling The sperm will be stored inside her until the risk that these pesticides represent for an immediate ban. Prior to the it is needed, next year. Meanwhile the when used in flowering crops. We also advent of neonicotinoids, oilseed rape male flies off, presumably to try his luck argued that the risk-assessment was treated with a range of other elsewhere. This compares favourably process by which neonicotinoid chemicals including pyrethroids, with the fate of honeybee males. Their pesticides were deemed to be 'safe' organophosphates, many of which are lives end when their genitals explosively should be reviewed in light of these toxic to bees. The Trust considers that detach from their bodies with an audible apparent 'sub-lethal' effects. a review is the necessary first step to „pop‟. What a way to go! ensure that crop protection needs are met with the minimum possible impacts Michael Gibbins: A mating pair of Red-tailed on bumblebees and other pollinators. bumblebees. Note the queen‟s sting, which has been moved up out of the way.

bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19 Issue 19 — bumblebeeconservation.org Bee brave! By Gill Wright, BBCT volunteer Getting busy for bumblebees How businesses are helping bumblebees

I decided it was time to share my and also sold lots of BBCT badges, Joining the Bumblebee Conservation Trust as a business, love of bees and flowers... books and leaflets. organisation or community group is a great way to support our work and become involved in helping Britain’s bumblebees. We have At our Gardening Club, members with A bee keeper came and sold his honey too; and this gave us a chance to explain simplified our corporate membership scheme and added some great particular interests sometimes give new benefits. There are now three types of membership: talks. As a life-long (amateur) cottage the important differences between honey garden and wildlife enthusiast, I bees and bumblebees and the quite volunteered to share ideas about separate reasons their populations are Community Groups(£50) – perfect for local clubs, youth groups or 'Gardening for Bumblebees'. currently under threat. schools.

BBCT sent me their training DVD Encouraged by this success, I agreed to Small Corporate (£250) – for organisations with 100 or fewer which, through Power Point slides, give the same talk, and run a stall, at employees/members. excellent narrative, maps and wonderful local Garden Centres in May and June. photographs, introduces the different They surrounded me with their best Large Corporate (£500) – for organisations with greater than 100 types of bumblebee, explains the bumblebee-friendly plants and allowed employees/members. threats they face and outlines what me to sell BBCT promotional materials alongside these. farmers and gardeners can do to Some of the fantastic benefits include; use of sponsorship statement and logo in provide suitable habitats. At BBCT‟s request I also helped to run a communications, recognition of support on our website and in our Annual Review, stall at Shipley Country Park on Saturday use of selected images from our photo library, wildflower seeds, reduced I just deleted a few slides to fit the time membership subscriptions for employees/members and many, many more. allowed, and played it on our laptop 12 May for their event 'Do one thing for Nature'. through the club's projector onto their For more information about joining as a group or organisation, please email large screen. Though nervous at first, I Go on! Bee Brave! If I can do it, I feel [email protected]. warmed to the task once I got going; sure you could promote BBCT in your and the talk went down pretty well! I town or village too! Just ask and the We‟d like to take this opportunity to thank all of our former „Corporate Fellow‟ provided a list of bumblebee friendly Trust will send you all you need. members, who have supported us generously:

Have a go!

If you fancy following in Gill‟s footsteps, let us help you! We have many resources that we can send you, including a new narrated PowerPoint presentation, leaflets and booklets.

For more information, Email us on: [email protected] Gill presenting to a rapt audience.

bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19 Issue 19 — bumblebeeconservation.org Bumbling about By Anthony McCluskey Bee kind in your garden By Anthony McCluskey The team has been out and about I was fortunate enough to volunteer at Here at the Bumblebee Conservation Trust we are as enthusiastic around the UK this summer, GWL for a couple of days in June. I met about wildlife gardens as we are about the wider farmed countryside. popping up at many events, some lovely people and came away full raising awareness of the plight of of hope for the future of our furry That might well have something to do with our passions for our own the bumblebee, and the ways that friends. If anyone is thinking about gardens... people can help. helping BBCT in this way then give it a go, you won't regret it! Bee kind One of the busiest was BBC Gardeners‟ Ron Rock, BBCT Volunteer We‟re sure that your garden IS bee-friendly, but just how bee-friendly is it? And how World Live in Birmingham. I was does it compare with other gardens in your area? delighted to see so many of our who were happy to stand around the members there, and really enjoyed the bumblarium and chat about bumblebees Use the new Bee kind tool on the BBCT website to get a score for your garden, then chance to spread the message about - it was the place to bee! receive tailored recommendations to fill in any gaps in the most bee-friendly way. bumblebees to such a large audience. This, and most of our other events, were To take part, simply visit http://beekind.bumblebeeconservation.org/ Our exhibit was undoubtedly helped by supported by fantastic volunteers who All of the plants listed on Bee kind are good for bumblebees, so you can use it is a our partnership with Habitat Aid, who came along to help out. By sharing their list to find bee-friendly flowers. As we are now approaching late summer, you can brought along the world‟s largest knowledge and enthusiasm they helped chose to have only late-summer-flowering plants shown on the Bee kind list. To do bumblarium, furnished with wildflower- us engage with a greater number of this, simply select August and September from the Month of flowering category on rich turf, and populated with a nest of people than would have been possible the left hand side of the bumblebees. Following a few technical otherwise. Much thanks to everyone who page. At the moment, the hitches (the bees got stage fright), they has helped us, we really appreciate your best flowers for bumblebees soon began to fly around, and most support! include lavender, importantly, to feed on the flowers. This cornflower, honeysuckle certainly brought over many visitors, Events calendar and verbena.

04-August: Bee in the Park‟ - bee walks If you have a certain colour at Park, scheme you‟d like to follow 14-August: Bee walks and talks at in your garden too, you can Jupiter centre, Falkirk also use the panel to select the flower colour, which I 14-16 August: Exhibit at have used to show only the Pembrokeshire County Show blue flowers in the example 26-August: Bee walks and talks at here. Aberfoyle Visitor Centre 07-Sept: Bumblebee ecology and ID Bee vigilant talk, Bicknoller Village Hall, Taunton As new queen bumblebees are being produced at this time of year, many will soon be going into hibernation. We often get reports of people finding queens hibernating 08-Sept: Exhibit at British Science in compost bins and flower beds, so be vigilant while digging! If you disturb any Enjoying the view at the bumblarium Festival, Aberdeen hibernating queens, you can cover them with loose soil again and hope that they will remain in hibernation until next Spring.

bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19 Issue 19 — bumblebeeconservation.org Title and name: Merchandise Shop!

Item Quantity Address: What‟s that bumblebee? £2.50 □ Bee ID pack Postcode: Email: Making space for bumblebees £3.00 □ Contains an identification poster for UK bumblebees, bumblebee Wildflower border mix £1.00 □ factsheet, a car sticker, „What‟s that Bumblebee?‟ guide, bumblebee- Telephone: friendly flower seeds and an „enamel‟ pin badge….£10 Great yellow pin badge £1.50 □ Blaeberry pin badge £1.50 □ Donate! Gardening pack Shrill carder pin badge £1.50 □ Contains a beautiful poster of bumblebee-friendly flowers, bumblebee Give to bumblebee conservation White-tailed pin badge £1.50 □ today! factsheet, car sticker, „Making space for bumblebees‟ book, bee- Gardening pack £10.00 □ friendly flower seeds and an „enamel‟ badge….£10 Amount: Bee ID pack £10.00 □ How would you like to pay? Kids pack £10.00 □ Poster Cheque □ Total: We offer three types of posters: ID poster showing all 24 UK (Please make payable to ‘Bumblebee Conservation Trust‟) Please make cheques payable to bumblebee species; Gardening poster packed full of planting „Bumblebee Conservation Trust‟ suggestions, and a bright and beautiful kid‟s poster perfect for a Regular donation – standing order □ bedroom wall...£1 (Use form below) Gift Aid

Every pound you give means an extra Name of account holder(s): Making space for bumblebees 25 pence from HM Revenue and Account no: Customs. Our new book is a guide to gardening for bumblebees at home and in Sort code: □ Yes, I want to Gift Aid all gifts of your community. It is packed full of bee-friendly gardening money that I have made in the past suggestions...£3 Amount: 4 years and all future gifts of money that I make from the date of this Start date: declaration. What’s that bumblebee? Signed: Signed: An updated version of our bumblebee field ID guide, now with photos of each species to help with identification in the field….£2.50 Date: Date:

You must pay an amount of income tax and/or Please return your completed form to: Bumblebee pin badge capital gains tax in each tax year at least equal Bumblebee Conservation Trust, to the tax that the charity will reclaim on your There are four styles of our beautiful enamel bumblebee badges: University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA Gift Aid donation(s). Please notify the charity if Shrill carder, Great yellow, Blaeberry, and the White-tailed your circumstances change or you want to cancel this declaration. bumblebee. Collect all four!....£1.50

Please pay the above-noted standing order to: Office use only Sort code: Account name: Bumblebee Conservation Trust Account no: bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19 Bank: Bank of Scotland. Statement ref no: Short-haired bumblebee Advice about bumblebee nests By Dr. Elaine O‟Mahony reintroduction update By Dr. Ben Darvill Bumblebees sometimes nest in the most inconvenient places. Help is Flowering fields in Kent have The success of the project hinges on at hand though... welcomed home Bombus the creation of healthy bumblebee subterraneus – the Short-haired habitat by local farmers. Using This year we have been amazed at the numbers of bumblebee - nearly a quarter of a Environmental Stewardship funding, emails, calls and letters about bumblebee nests, with farmers in Dungeness have been over 400 emails since May alone! century after the bee was last preparing for the bees‟ homecoming by seen in Britain. growing flower-rich borders and The vast majority of enquiries relate to the Tree meadows. The release, which took place in May, bumblebee. This species tends to nest well above the was the culmination of a three year ground, often in a bird nesting box, roof space, air brick partnership project, involving BBCT, or any suitably sized nook and cranny in a porch roof or Natural England, the RSPB and soffit! As you can imagine, the appearance of these Hymettus. bees close to homes has been causing some alarm. But Bill Brewer: Tree bumblebees at most people have been very considerate and instead of home in a bird nest box. Over fifty queen bees were released at calling pest control they have been contacting BBCT for the RSPB‟s Dungeness reserve amid advice on how to peaceably co-exist with their bees. significant media and public interest. It was a fantastic day. If you have a Tree bumblebee nest in your garden, it is best to be a little cautious. Although most bumblebees are not aggressive to people, Tree bumblebees may defend against any perceived threat to their nest. Cutting the grass or slamming a Following the successful release the door can be seen as a threat. In many cases you will not need to take any action focus has switched to monitoring to and can leave the nest where it is. Colonies will naturally finish by the end of the hopefully ascertain whether breeding summer as all bumblebees will leave the nest or die. Once the colony has finished, has taken place. Further releases are any holes/cavities can then be blocked up to prevent a queen taking up residence planned in future years. next spring (only if you don‟t want the bees to return, of course).

Bumblebees are now scarce in many If the nest is problematic, you might consider moving it. This can be difficult if it is farmland areas due to intensive concealed in soil or in a cavity but is relatively straightforward when the nest is in a agriculture. The habitat restoration bird box. Some of the basic steps are below. Please refer to the guide to nest Project Officer Dr. Nikki Gammans releasing the work, in preparation for this moving on our website (in the FAQ section) for more detailed advice. bees on live national television. reintroduction, shows what is possible when bee-friendly practises are used. Moving a bumblebee nest that is in a bird box The Short-haired bumblebee was once Farmers here are running successful widespread but numbers fell during the businesses and producing food, whilst Wait until dusk or night, when all the bees have returned twentieth century and by the 1980s it supporting healthy pollinator Block up the hole in the nest box using a sponge or tape was restricted to south Kent. It was last populations. We hope that farmers Carefully remove the box from its current position seen in Britain in 1988 and declared throughout the UK will be inspired to Take the box to its new location, and secure it at roughly the same height extinct in 2000. help bumblebees on their farms. from the ground as it was originally found Remove the blockage in the morning, so that bees leaving the nest become used to their new location.

bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19 Issue 19 — bumblebeeconservation.org What’s the buzz? BeeWatch Tell us what you think By Dr. Ben Darvill

We need your help to map the UK’s bumblebee population The case of the hollow bees... Sticky orchid! Although we all know just how important bumblebees are, we’d like to Those of a sensitive disposition should Peter Skillen wrote to us saying: “I was know more about their distributions around the UK. We have teamed probably stop reading! photographing bees and butterflies in up with scientists from Aberdeen University and produced a fantastic our town cemetery when I came across resource which is already turning up unexpected records. Jimmy Maxwell and Sam Lord wrote to this bumblebee on an orchid. It was very lethargic and seemed close to us recently to tell us of a particularly If you can use a digital camera and the internet then you can help us to map the death. I noticed a strange growth grizzly discovery. Both found distributions of our bumblebee species, plus improve your identification skills in the between its mandibles and suspect this bumblebees in their gardens that were process. This is an idea that you have heard from us before, but with an all-new could be a fungal growth called wriggling on the ground. On closer interactive user interface, making the experience easier, slicker and more cordycep fungus. Could you please tell inspection they realised that the insides rewarding. of these bees were completely missing. me what you think?”

Jimmy wrote: „Both have their This system allows users to upload any photos they take of bumblebees, and to Luckily for this bumblebee, it has not abdomens entirely hollowed out with have a go at identifying them. The identifications are then confirmed by experts, and been infected by a fungus. The „growth‟ only the casings remaining. Both were you‟ll be told if your original identification was correct. Don‟t worry if your ID skills still alive‟. emerging from the bee‟s nose was aren‟t exactly up to scratch, this system aims to help users improve their skills. deposited by the orchids that it was found on. The records generated are then used to help accurately map the distribution of our bumblebees, in partnership with the Bees, Wasps and Ants Recording Society. Orchids do not produce pollen in the Over time, we can use this information to see just how bumblebee distributions usual way but instead, parcel it in sticky change in response to things such as climate change and land use change. structures called pollinia. These pollinia attach themselves to visiting insects There is a very real chance of unearthing the first record for a county, region or Jimmy Maxwell: One of the hollowed bees. and are then transferred to another even country. For example, the distinctive Tree Bumblebee arrived in the UK in 2001 in Hampshire and is spreading rapidly. It is now lined up along the Scottish orchid, allowing cross-pollination. Bumblebees possess brightly coloured border – waiting to invade! Someone out there will be the first person to see the stripes to warn potential predators of Tree bumblebee in Scotland. their sting. As a result, adult bumblebees have relatively few To take part, head to http://bumblebeeconservation.org/ and click on the BeeWatch link. predators. But some birds are undeterred and have learned how to access the juicy contents inside.

Robins and Great tits are thought to be the main culprits.

Peter Skillen: bumblebee with fancy headgear. What bees are these? Take part in Bee Watch and improve your ID skills!

bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19 Issue 19 — bumblebeeconservation.org Promoting bee-friendly farming By Jo Chesworth

Sam and Jo from BBCT Farmers benefit from having a healthy Conservation Team have been population of wild pollinators on their speaking to Conservation Grade land, and bumblebees in particular are excellent pollinators of crops such as farmers about the importance of oilseed rape, field beans and apples. bumblebees. Conservation Grade Over the last 70 years, agricultural licensees that buy the intensification has led to declines in a crops, such as wheat range of farmland biodiversity, including and oats, use the birds and bumblebees. Conservation Conservation Grade Grade farmers are helping to turn this logo on their products. situation around and Sam and Jo have So consumers are able to choose a been out and about offering advice on brand with a clear, proven commitment bumblebee ecology and the to biodiversity conservation. management of pollen and nectar habitats for bumblebees. So, if you buy with the Conservation Grade logo you know you can eat your The farmers were keen to learn breakfast cereal, salads or bread, safe more about bumblebee ecology and in the knowledge you are also helping how they can manage their farms to Britain‟s wildlife. benefit bumblebees. Many are already doing great things such as planting wildflower strips alongside their crops, and several have expressed an interest in monitoring for bumblebees on their farms through our BeeWalk scheme.

Conservation Grade is a unique sustainability protocol that requires Graphic artist Jessica Albarn recently raised farmers to use 10% of their land for the some money for BBCT by selling bee-friendly creation and management of a specific seed packets at the Art Car Boot Fair in range of habitats for wildlife. 4% of the London. Jessica designed and printed these habitats must provide pollen and nectar limited edition seed packets herself, and here for pollinating insects. In return, the Jo discussing field margin management with is a photo of Jessica hard at work in her shed. farmers receive a premium price for farmers. Visit www.jessicaalbarn.co.uk to see some their crop. more of her designs.

bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19 Issue 19 — bumblebeeconservation.org bumblebeeconservation.org — Issue 19