Buglife launch B-Lines across Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray
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CONSERVATION charity Buglife has launched a B-Lines map for Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray as part of a complete network for Scotland.
B-Lines is a response to the decline of bees and other pollinating insects, a plan for how to reconnect wild places by creating a network of wildflowers across landscapes.
Precious pollinators are disappearing from large parts of the countryside – there are fewer bees, hoverflies, butterflies and moths – and as well as the loss of abundance, some species are at risk of extinction in Scotland.
However, this can be changed by working together to restore wildflower areas in the countryside and urban areas.
B-Lines provides an opportunity to create a network of wildflower-rich areas across Scotland providing essential routes for pollinators to use.
The B-Lines network in Scotland includes the best habitats and identifies key areas to restore and create new wildflower-rich meadows, important grassland verges and pollinator friendly gardens. B-Lines can be adopted by farmers and landowners, local authorities and the general public across all of Scotland.
Buglife Scotland Manager, Natalie Stevenson, said: "Launching B-lines across Scotland will help us forge strong regional partnerships so together we can improve habitats and ensure that the important ecological services provided by pollinators can be sustained.
"People across Scotland are realising how critical invertebrates are for a nature-rich future and are beginning to change the way they manage our grasslands, but there is so much more we can do. Let us have those critical conversations now and lead the change for our future.”
Aberdeenshire Council deputy leader, Cllr Peter Argyle, said: “In my capacity as one of our Biodiversity Champions for Pollinators, I am delighted to support the identification of a network of B-Lines in Aberdeenshire which will identify important pathways for a wide range of insects and other species. This will help to protect and hopefully enhance these areas to create more opportunities for wildlife.”
Fellow Biodiversity Champion Cllr Leigh Wilson added: “Aberdeenshire’s coastline supports a fantastic diversity of grassland and heathland habitats and I am pleased to support the identification of much of the coastline of Aberdeenshire as a B-Line together with other important pathways such as river valleys. Pollinating insects are essential to healthy, functioning ecosystems as they have a key role in the reproduction of many plant species.”
Everyone who manages land across Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray can help to restore our pollinator populations. Take a look at the B-Lines map and see if your farm, garden, local park or other land you manage is on a B-Line.
Building on existing work supporting pollinators, the North East Scotland Biodiversity Partnership was thrilled to be involved in the process of defining B-lines in the North East of Scotland.
Alex Stuart, co-ordinator for the partnership said: “Maintaining and improving these areas, and the network they form across the whole of Scotland, is a vital step in helping combat the loss of pollinators and the plant species they need such as our native wildflowers. We look forward to continuing to work closely with all three local authorities to make sure our B-lines are buzzing.”
Ged Connell, Countryside Ranger for Moray Council, added: “Changes in land use such as modern farming practices and new transport links has led to a serious decline in the wildlife depending on wildflower-rich habitat. We are happy to work in partnership with B- lines which will create more flower rich habitats in Moray providing more opportunities for wildlife and insect pollinators to thrive.”
If you would like to get involved, please contact Buglife Scotland. The project has been supported by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.
https://www.buglife.org.uk/our-work/b-lines/
- Buglife is the only organisation in Europe devoted to the conservation of all invertebrates. We’re actively working to save Britain’s rarest little animals, everything from bees to beetles, worms to woodlice and jumping spiders to jellyfish. Buglife’s aim is to halt the extinction of invertebrate species and to achieve sustainable populations of invertebrates.
- The North East Scotland Biodiversity Partnership (NESBiP) is a non-profit making Partnership working to protect and promote the biodiversity of North East of Scotland on which much of our social and economic wellbeing still depends.
- The Partnership includes Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire and Moray Councils along with NatureScot, Forestry Scotland, the James Hutton Institute and other organisations as well as a small number of individuals.
- The Coordinator’s post is funded by the partners and hosted by the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen.
