There are still 707 wild bee species in Austria. Because the massive loss of their habitats, intensive agriculture and the use of pesticides are taking their toll. In short: wild bees are “threatened”.
Wild bee expert Heinz Wiesbauer warns in the new edition of his book “Wild bees” that the diversity of these insects, which are extremely important for plant pollination, is “critically endangered”. In Austria, 37 wild bee species have become extinct in recent decades. If the criteria of the Red List were used, about half of all species would be threatened in one way or another, the landscape ecologist emphasizes.
Climate change is partly responsible for this. With higher biodiversity in southern countries, you might think that most species could benefit from a warmer climate. But the opposite is the case.
The mountain species face an expected rise in temperature by the end of the century, equivalent to an altitude difference of 300 meters. But the bee species that are widespread above the tree line can hardly go up, because the areas to the top are getting smaller and smaller. This affects, for example, the alpine bumblebee (photo below), which currently only occurs at altitudes above 2200 meters.
Increasing temperatures in the lowlands are increasingly causing certain plants to flower, hatch and be active at a different time than the wild bee species that are specialized for this purpose. Due to the heat stress, flowers often do not develop properly, which limits the supply of pollen and nectar for the bees.
Honey bee competition
Extreme heat also forces the bees to take longer breaks at midday, which reduces the time for nest building and food storage. The increasing distance between the breeding ground and forage plants due to the ever-decreasing supply of flowers also poses problems for the wild bees, which are usually steadfast. This is compounded by increasing competition from honey bees due to the beekeeping boom in recent years.
Everyday species rather than specialized species
Of course, there are also beneficiaries of the higher temperatures and certain species may expand their range or increase in numbers. “However, we are gaining commonplace species while at the same time losing highly specialized species,” says Wiesbauer.
Provide nesting sites or improve the food supply
“You can achieve a lot with simple measures,” says the author. For example, he does not understand “that every dike in Austria from Lake Constance to Lake Neusiedl is mowed every year at the beginning of May”. Smaller and more differentiated pruning could improve the supply of flowers and thus the food supply for the wild bees. Steep walls, unpaved dirt roads, even holes in the lawn would provide nesting opportunities. And even in a well-tended garden, you can provide breeding grounds with a few old pith stems stuck in the lawn.
Source: Krone
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