[Pollinator] Power lines may provide a haven for bees

[Matthew Shepherd (Xerces Society)]

Power lines may provide a haven for bees
Duncan Graham-Rowe; 8/26/05
Full article in New Scientist, at: http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7910

Overhead power lines may be reviled by most people but for the humble bee they may be a saviour. The millions of acres of land-strips beneath power lines represent an untapped conservation resource for bees and other threatened creatures, new research suggests.

Normally regarded as blots on the landscape and accused by many of producing cancer-inducing low frequency electromagnetic fields, high voltage power lines are not typical candidates for conservation sites, says Kimberly Russell an invertebrate zoologist at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

But she says changes in management practice of this land appear to be offering a much needed home for bees, which have been in decline in many countries for decades. 

In the US, the land covered by power lines makes up more than 5 million acres. That is more land than almost every national park in the US individually, including Yellowstone, says Russell
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The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
Protecting wildlife through science-based advocacy, education, 
and conservation projects since 1971. To join the Society, make a 
contribution, or read about our work, please visit www.xerces.org.

Matthew Shepherd
Director, Pollinator Conservation Program
4828 SE Hawthorne Boulevard, Portland, OR 97215, USA
Tel: 503-232 6639 Fax: 503-233 6794
Email: mdshepherd at xerces.org 
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