Home / Environment / Rare Bee Ventures West: Coastal Habitat Thrives
Rare Bee Ventures West: Coastal Habitat Thrives
27 Oct
Summary
- A rare sea aster mining bee was discovered in Somerset.
- Restoration work created a perfect habitat for the bee.
- The bee relies on sea aster flowers found on coastal marshes.
A scarce zebra-striped bee, the sea aster mining bee, usually inhabiting the southern and eastern coasts of England, has been unexpectedly observed in the West Country. Naturalist Nigel Phillips documented the bee at Steart Marshes in Somerset, expressing significant surprise at the sighting. This notable discovery was facilitated by extensive saltmarsh restoration efforts undertaken by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust at the nature reserve.
The restoration project, completed in 2014, transformed former agricultural land into a vibrant coastal wetland. This initiative successfully recreated an ideal habitat, allowing seawater to flow back across the fields. The reserve now boasts a rich variety of coastal wildflowers, including a substantial presence of the sea aster, a pink and yellow flower crucial for the bee's diet. It is believed that the abundance of this specific flower finally drew the bees to the Steart peninsula.
Phillips noted the presence of numerous bees and several colonial nesting sites in the dry, sandy ground, initially believing they were exclusive to salt marshes near the Thames estuary. This finding underscores the biodiversity of saltmarshes, which are home to 148 of the UK's 290 saltmarsh-dependent invertebrate species. Site manager Bay Alys Laver emphasized that while saltmarshes are often associated with birds, they support much unseen life, and the successful return of the sea aster mining bee is a testament to the reserve's management.
