Much has been reported recently about the global collapse in insect life. As David Attenborough has said, 'If we and the rest of the back-boned animals were to disappear overnight, the rest of the world would get on pretty well. But if the invertebrates were to disappear, the world's ecosystems would collapse.'

Bees are especially crucial as far as humanity is concerned, because of their role as pollinators.

Buglife, The Invertebrate Conservation Trust, has responded by developing the B-Line Hub. The B-Lines are a network made up of a series of 'insect pathways' running through our countryside and towns; an imaginative and beautiful solution to the problem of loss of flowers and pollinators.  They link existing wildlife areas together, creating a network, like a railway, that will weave across the British landscape.

A map of B-Lines identified so far is here. Most of Devon, including our corner, is so far blank!

Sustainable Crediton is looking to launch a project to remedy this. Possible actions include:

Habitat restoration and creation of new habitat, including flower planting, tree planting, bee banks, more sympathetic management of open spaces;

Establishment of wildflower meadows - private or public land including parks;

Encouragement of sympathetic planting;

School activities;

Community orchard planting;

Making transport corridors bee friendly;

NOW... we need people to get involved to make it happen. It doesn't need to be a massive time commitment, we always try to work in teams to share the effort and make it manageable. If you are interested, contact John Craythorne using the link above: thanks!