The B-Lines Update Issue 9 June 2016

Welcome to our latest update B-Lines connues to make big strides across the countr and as ou will see in this issue is now making a splash in the East of England. With support from Anglian Water we have been able to spread the B-Lines message across several new counes and hope this will encourage others to get involved. B-Lines connues to look for opportunies to deliver more pollinator-friendl habitats and we are alwas on the look out for others to contribute in ‘their’ part of the network. If ou have an ueries about geng involved or staing up to date with Hoverfly©Steven Falk our work contact: [email protected]

Working with farmers in Kent and Sussex

Buglife has teamed up with Natural England, Farmcare Ltd and Ecotricit on its Landscapes for Wild Pollinators and Farm Wildlife Project. A ke part of this project is providing support for landowners across ent and usse on habitat management, restoraon and creaon for wild pollinators. The B-Lines provide an important backbone to the project, as the incorporate some of the best of usse and ent’s natural habitats, including species-rich chalk grassland, vibrant meadows and tradional fruit orchards. ver the past few months we have started to work with landowners to safeguard these eisng habitats and will connue to work to see how we can join them up through the B-Lines network. ur Farm Advisor is on hand with advice on how best to provide and manage beneficial features, and help with accessing funding support. This includes working with the Countrside tewardship Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package, and we are advising landowners on both igher Tier and id Tier applicaons that will increase the uant and ualit of habitat for wild pollinators. Interested in finding out more? contact Laurie Jackson [email protected] or 07880 316036

Meadow creation site © Paul Evans www.buglife.org.uk Tel: 01733 201 210 @buzz_dont_tweet inistry of use making a -Line to support our pollinators Buglife and the inistr of Jusce have joined forces to help conserve the U’s wild insect pollinators. As part of its Year of Pollinators 2016 the inistr is aiming to make its estate more pollinator friendl b creang new areas of wildower-rich grasslands and other habitats. This work will also help deliver ke acons outlined in the Naonal Pollinator trateg for England. B working together Buglife and the inistr of Jusce will provide new food and nesng resources across the countr. uch of this work will be targeted within the B-Lines network - a network of ower-rich pathwas crisscrossing our countrside, towns and cies. B making areas of land or buildings within the B -Lines more pollinator friendl, pollinators will be able to move more easil around the countrside as the look for food, or as the need to move as the climate changes. With help from guidance produced b Buglife, ever part of the inistr’s Estate is being encouraged to do something for pollinators, whether this be simpl erecng a bee hotel, planng up a wild herb bed or cung grass less and allowing buercups and dandelions to ower. Parts of the estate which have more land are being encouraged to look for opportunies to create new wildower meadows or create nesng areas for bees. The aim is to provide lots of small areas of pollinator habitat which when added together and developed along the B-Lines will make a real difference. We hope this challenge taken up b the inistr will also be taken up b other government departments, local authories, businesses, farmers and the general public.

For more informaon contact [email protected]

Work part © Clare Dinham aking A -Line for the North East The project is now coming to an end but has been ver successful. We have carried out habitat restoraon on 12 Local Wildlife ites and two I, and restored/created wildower-rich grassland on a further 8 sites. In partnership with Durham Wildlife Trust over 14 schools across underland and outh Tneside, have had the chance to get involved in B-Lines and seven of these have actuall created some wildower habitat on their school grounds. That’s enough words so a few photos of our grassland restoraon work

ubject to funding we are hoping to iniate a similar project in Newcastle upon Tne and North Tneside. www.buglife.org.uk Tel: 01733 201 210 @buzz_dont_tweet News from some of our conservaon partners

Wildflower Superhighways in the Yorkshire Dales

The eadow Links project aims to create wildower superhighwas and wildlife hubs across the Yorkshire Dales, to provide connected pathwas, shelter and food for our wildlife. The project is being co-ordinated b the Yorkshire Dales illennium Trust (YDT), and is driven b communies who want to conserve their local wildlife and build important ‘stepping stones’ between fragmented wildlife habitats. B creang new wildower-rich habitats in strategicall important locaons across the Yorkshire Dales, eadow Links will help to etend and improve the naonal B-Lines network so that pollinators and other wildlife can move across the landscape more easil. Working alongside Buglife, Yorkshire Dales Naonal Park Authorit (YDNPA) and Natural England eadow Links conservaon work will help create a more cohesive and resilient network for wildlife and idenf areas where more acon is needed.

uff-tailed bumblebee

YDT’s Tana t. Pierre is keen to get people involved We have some fantasc opportunies for people in the Yorkshire Dales area to get involved in the eadow Swaledale eadow © Tanya St.Pierre Links project and support their local wildlife. We’re looking for groups who would like to create a wildlife meadow in their own communit space, as well as homeowners and landowners who would like to create wildlife patches that will act as stepping stones to etend the wildower highwas. These patches can be an shape or size, from hedgerows and verges to small back gardens.” If ou or our communit group would like to create a communit meadow or wildlife patch, please contact Tana t. Pierre at YDT on 015242 51002 or email tana.stpierre@dmt.org

To find out more about eadow Links visit www.dmt.org/meadow-links www.buglife.org.uk Tel: 01733 201 210 @buzz_dont_tweet Pieing together the habitats along the ohn uir Pollinator Way

cotland’s first B-Lines project has been idenfing opportunies for creang, enhancing and managing important grassland habitat for insect pollinators and other wildlife along a 6km wide corridor of the enre 134 mile route of the John uir Wa. Using data provided b conservaon partners and local authories the project idenfied over 300 sites designated for their wildlife interests. In addion we idenfied a significant number of sites where there ma be potenal to create habitat of benefit to pollinators and other wildlife, including over 50 golf courses, almost 300 public parks and pla spaces, 5 countr parks, and over 800 schools and nurseries, hospitals and places of worship and cemeteries. If a significant number of these sites were able to restore or create valuable wildower-rich habitats, this would produce a more joined up pollinator pathwa along the corridor of the John uir Wa. Reports on the work have been made available to the each of the local authories involved and can be download on the Buglife website. We will be working with and encouraging landowners and managers to do something good for pollinators on the sites idenfied. To raise awareness the project has been running events promong the importance of wildower-rich grassland for pollinators and how to create and manage these Seed harvesting © North Pennines AONB habitats. ver John uir’s birthda week from 16th- © Bumblebee Conservaon Trust 24th April 2016, a total of 20 events were held for 280 people. Habitat restoraon© David Palmar This project has been funded b cosh Natural eritage and the Central cotland Green Network ideas fund.

Please contact uzanne Burgess, 01786 447 504 or at [email protected]

Others working to deliver -Lines

Working with FWAG: B-Lines leaets have been produced with both Norfolk and uffolk Farming & Wildlife Advisor Groups, to help them engage farmers in developing Norfolk and uffolk B-Lines. The leaets highlight the valuable contribuon that farmers can make to helping our pollinators, including ke opons in the Countrside tewardship’s Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package. Failitaon Funds: Buglife is looking to engage with dozens of land managers across Norfolk, uffolk and Devon through the innovave Countrside tewardship Facilitaon Funds. These farmer led groups offer the opportunit for land managers to work together to deliver co-ordinated deliver for wildlife across their local area. Buglife is offering pollinator advice and helping to promote the deliver of wildower-rich habitats within B-Lines to three of the Facilitaon Funded groups that were awarded funding in 2015. Anglian Water: Aer kindl supporng the East of England B-Lines mapping Anglian Water are now looking to use the B-Lines network to target their own work for pollinators. www.buglife.org.uk Tel: 01733 201 210 @buzz_dont_tweet South Wales -Lines

Thanks to funding from the Welsh Government and the JP Ge (Jnr) Charitable Trust Buglife has started to map B-Lines in outh and West Wales. The project area etends from Pembrokeshire to onmouthshire, taking in the amazing coastline and outh Wales alles. Inial partnership workshops were held back in arch to share informaon and discuss opportunies for delivering B-Lines in outh Wales. The West Wales Biodiversit Informaon Centre is now bus mapping potenal B-Lines routes based on habitat data collated from partners and we will be discussing and finalising the outh Wales B- Lines routes at the end of this month. Going forward we will be sourcing funding to deliver B-Lines, and encourage our partners to consider these routes within their conservaon deliver mechanisms.

West of England -Lines

ince the project started in April 2014 the West of England B-Lines project has connued to gain momentum and support form partners, local communies and funders which translates to significant habitat benefits for the regions wild pollinators and other wildlife. Buglife and partners Avon Wildlife Trust (AWT) have now carried out over 120 ha of grassland restoraon, much of it carried out b AWTs Grassland Restoraon Team: volunteers who do an amazing job ear round to enhance sites for our bees, hoveries and bueries. This huge effort euates to 144 praccal conservaon task das Work party © Clare Dinham and 743 das of volunteer me We have also worked closel with our local authorit partners, Natural England, land owners and local groups to make a real difference to the West of England B-Lines network, and secure its sustainabilit for future ears. April of this ear saw the start of an addional ears funding from Cor Environmental Trust in Britain, who along with Ibstock Cor Environmental Trust have plaed a ke role in supporng the B-Lines project in Avon. ur partners Avon Wildlife Trust are also securing funding to take B-Lines deliver forward for future ears, including a project which will restore species rich habitats between a number of their nature reserves creang a trul joined up landscape for wildlife.

www.buglife.org.uk Tel: 01733 201 210 @buzz_dont_tweet A -Line for the East of England

B-Lines are making a huge splash in the East of England thanks to the generous support of Anglian Water. Buglife and partners have mapped B-Lines for a large part of the East of England and beond in 2016, including Lincolnshire, Nonghamshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, fordshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, erordshire and Esse. This means that Buglife is now working to create networks of wildower-rich habitats from the umber down to the Thames Estuar and from the Norfolk Broads across to the edge of the Cotswolds. Working in partnership with the Bedfordshire and Luton Biodiversit Recording and onitoring Centre, Lincolnshire © Environmental Records Centre and erts Environmental Records Centre, and with help Ragged Robin in new eadow © Paul Evans from other data centres, local Wildlife Trusts and local authories, Buglife held workshops in 2016 to engage stakeholders in mapping B-Lines across the East of England. Buglife is now looking to work with partners and landowners across the region to deliver wildower-rich habitats to help make the region more pollinator-friendl. This work has added significantl to the naonal B-Lines network and Buglife now needs help from as man people as possible to help deliver for pollinators. If ou or our organisaon is interested in helping us to develop B-Lines in an of these new areas, please contact Paul Evans on [email protected] .

Can ou help? We are keen to work with, and develop new partnerships to deliver stretches of the B-Lines network, both in our countrside and urban environments. If ou have an contacts who might be interested, please forward them this B-Lines Update. Thank ou. To sta up to date with progress keep vising the Buglife website www.buglife.org.uk .

ome of our ke partners we would like to thank:

Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservaon Trust is a registered charit at Bug ouse, am Lane, rton Waterville, Peterborough, PE2 5UU Registered Charit No: 10223, cosh Charit No: C040004, Compan No: 413265