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<DIV><EM>From University of Cambridge</EM></DIV>
<DIV><EM>Date: 10/09/10</EM> </DIV>
<H2>Translating science for conservation: bees benefit first</H2>
<DIV class=cn_toppara><IMG alt="Translating science for conservation: bees benefit first. Photo credit: David Goulson" hspace=10 src="http://www.cambridgenetwork.co.uk/object/news/74169/img/Beeconservation.jpg" width=200 align=right>A project to make conservation science accessible and
relevant to conservationists and policymakers launches its first major synopsis
of evidence, on bee conservation.</DIV>
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<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>For the first time, scientific
knowledge and experience about how to conserve wild bees around the world has
been brought together by conservation scientists led by Professor William J.
Sutherland and Dr Lynn Dicks at the University of Cambridge.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>The synopsis of evidence on bee
conservation is meant to inform people taking action or spending money to help
wild bees - anyone from farmers to international NGOs - about what works and
what doesn't. It is part of a project called </FONT><A href="http://www.conservationevidence.com/BrowseSynopses.aspx" target=_blank><FONT size=2>Conservation Evidence</FONT></A><FONT size=2>, which
aims to make conservation practice more science-based.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>Bees are the most important
pollinators globally, and their decline has received much publicity. "There are
more than 25,000 species of bee worldwide," says Dr Simon G. Potts, an expert on
pollinator conservation from the University of Reading who advised on the
development of the bee synopsis. "In areas where good quality data are
available, severe declines in many species have been documented." In response,
governments and international organisations are now investing in pollinator
conservation.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>The bee synopsis, developed in
partnership with an international group of bee experts, lists 59 different
actions you could take to benefit wild bees. They range from providing nest
boxes or planting flowers to training beekeepers to keep native species. For
each intervention, evidence is summarised in plain English.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>In some cases, the evidence tells
a clear story. Leaving strips at the edge of crop fields untreated with
herbicides and pesticides does not help bumblebees, for example - two replicated
trials in the UK have found no more bees on these strips than in ordinary crop
fields. But there is evidence from many parts of the world that providing nest
boxes on agricultural land can benefit solitary bees. Twenty-nine studies show
that solitary bees, including endangered species, will use nest boxes and three
studies show numbers of nesting bees can double over three years with repeated
nest box provision.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>Bees can be problematic in places
where they are not native, and there is some evidence about how to reduce the
impacts of invasive bee species. A concerted effort to eradicate European
buff-tailed bumblebees from small patches of Japanese countryside, for example,
increased numbers of native bumblebees, but did not remove the invaders
altogether.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>"This synopsis is a great step
forward in providing a clear evidence base for anyone setting out to conserve
wild bees, from conservation agencies to individuals," says Professor Andrew
Bourke, a bumblebee expert from the University of East Anglia, UK, and member of
the Advisory Board for the bee synopsis. He was surprised by the often low
success rate of artificial nest boxes for bumblebees. "This work highlights how
much more there is to learn about bees," he says.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>As well as helping to inform
decisions about bee conservation, the synopsis shows where there are gaps in our
knowledge. There is no direct evidence to show whether increasing the amount of
natural habitat in farmed areas can help bees, for example, and very little
evidence for the effects of restricting pesticide use on bees, although
conservationists often advocate these actions. "Habitat preservation and the
proper application and use of insecticides are the most important issues in bee
conservation now," says Peter Kwapong, of the International Stingless Bee Centre
in Ghana, a member of the Advisory Board. Clearly, these are areas where
research should focus.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>The Conservation Evidence project
also has an open access journal where conservationists can document their
experience and an online database of evidence published elsewhere, relating to
conservation interventions. The series of synopses, of which Bee Conservation is
the first, will cover other major species groups, habitat types and issues.
Synopses are already being prepared for birds, butterflies, grassland and
farmland.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>"The bee synopsis brings
together, for the first time, a systematic overview of conservation practices
that can really help protect bees," says Potts. "The challenge now is for
policymakers to take up these actions."</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><FONT size=2><EM><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small">Photo
credit:</SPAN></EM><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"> David
Goulson</SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><A href="http://www.conservation.cam.ac.uk/" target=_blank><FONT size=2>Cambridge Conservation
Initiative</FONT></A><BR></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><BR></SPAN><EM><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: small"><FONT size=2>Reproduced courtesy University of
Cambridge Office of Communications<BR></FONT></SPAN></EM></P></DIV>
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<DIV class=cn_artsubtext><B>See also:</B><BR>Organisation: <A href="http://www.cambridgenetwork.co.uk/directory/orgprofile/default.aspx?objid=5796">University
of Cambridge</A><BR></DIV><!--[[content()]]-->
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