UK insect decline caused by loss of wildflowers in countryside
By Louise Gray, Environment Correspondent
27 Oct 2010 Butterflies and bees are declining because of the loss of wild flowers in the countryside, according to a major Government report. A team of researcher from the Centre for Hydrology and Ecology (CEH) monitored 500 plots of ‘semiwild’ land across the UK between 1990 and 2007 on the edge of farms, alongside hedgerows or streams and even at the bottom of people’s gardens. Over 17 years the number of different plants on each plot reduced significantly, with at least one species lost in every patch of ground. Most of the plants lost were wild flowers like poppies, willow herb and forget-me-nots. These ‘good weeds’ not only make the countryside look pretty but are essential to sustaining the population of nectar-feeding insects. Butterflies and bees need variety in their diets and rely on different plants to provide this diversity. Also, wild flowers provide nectar when agricultural plants have been harvested. Lindsay Maskell, a vegetation scientist at CEH, blamed ‘bad weeds’ like nettles, thistles and ivy for crowding out the wild flowers. She explained that run-off from farms and nitrogen from factories have fertilised the soil, helping coarse rough grass to grow but hindering more delicate plants like speedwell. She said the decline in wild flowers was affecting insects and could eventually reduce the harvest of crops like strawberries and apples that rely on pollinators. “The habitat pollinating insects rely on is disappearing and becoming in a worse condition,” she said. “It is just one of a number of factors such as disease affecting insects like bees. If there is insufficient land to maintain the pollinators it could affect agriculture.” …
