Its funny how you get to take familiar things for granted – it was only when I read about the Oil Beetle Hunt, being run by Buglife (The Invertabrate Conservation Trust) this spring, that I realised the blue-black beetles all around might actually be a bit special.

Black Oil Beetle "Meloe proscarabaeus"

It turns out they’re black oil beetles (Meloe proscarabaeus), and they’re from a family of beetles that are becoming rare enough to warrant priority status under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan.  I must have counted over 10 beetles this afternoon, and countless nest burrows.  Our friends aren’t the rarest oil beetles, but they have an interesting lifecycle.

Nearby, the grass was buzzing with small black bees – solitary mining bees, I think (I even managed to snap a photo of one).  It turns out the female beetle lays hundreds of eggs in her underground burrow.  When the larvae hatch, they crawl onto flowers, and lay in wait for a suitable mining bee.  They grab a ride and, once back in the unfortunate bee’s nest, they feed on the pollen and nectar before emerginging as an adult beetle.

Mining bee "Andrena cineraria"

Another solitary bee which emerges around now is the friendly little Osmia rufa – rather like a honey bee but with any orangey colour.  They don’t sting, and don’t do nearly as much harm to walls as people think – so please don’t harm them.  There’s more info on solitary bees, as well as downloads and links, on the Devon Beekeepers’ website.

And if you see any oil beetles, do report your finds to the Buglife survey.

BzzzZZZZZzzzzzz……………….

P.S. A Buglife investigation contradicts the Government position on bee poisoning by neonicotinoids.  If you see evidence of bee poisoning, you can report it through the DEFRA Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme.  Only by reporting will the evidence be available to influence Government policy.

I was going to post something about planting for spring interest, but that will have to wait as my thoughts drifted to spring of last year, when I kept finding dead bumble bees on my daily dog walking route, through fields of oilseed rape.  I found so many dead bees, day after day, that on one walk I collected them all up – over 30 in less than an hour!   The explanation offered by the “experts” I contacted was that the bees had probably died of cold.  But I have my doubts.

Today the UN published a report on the decline of bee populations around the world.  The significance of bees to human survival can hardly be overstated: of the crops that provide 90% of our food, 71% are polinated by bees.  The report’s findings indicate the problem is widespread, and the causes are complex.  However, pesticides are one of the key suspects.

Apis mellifera on Cephalaria gigantea

Italy, Germany, France and Slovenia have all banned certain pesticides because of their deadly effect on bees.  Sadly, despite some compelling evidence, both new disclosures (check out this Independent article) as well as older news (e.g this  soil association briefing), the UK Government doesn’t seem ready to act.  Perhaps the lobbying has been a bit half-hearted – it emerged in January that the British Beekeepers’ Association had been receiving money from the pesticide manufacturers.

So, what can you do?  Well, today the British Beekeepers’ Association issued an invitation to a debate at the House of Commons, so if you’re in town why not pop along and have your say?  Meanwhile, back home in the garden we can steer clear of bee-deadly chemicals:  complimentary planting is always a good idea, there’s a list of pesticides to avoid here, and a free download from www.biobees.com here.

Please also join the AVAAZ Petition to get neonicotinoides banned in the EU and US – as I write this over 1.2 million people have already signed up!

Lets hope it isn’t too late for our familiar honey bee Apis mellifera……..

Update 20 June 2011: Slovenia confirms neonicotinides caused bee deaths, and announce lawsuit against manufacturers.