Science & Nature

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DRAWN TO THE LIGHT

Satellite Eupsilia transversa Gillian Nash

Unique markings that resemble ‘satellites’ orbiting a planet make for clear identification of this beautiful moth, in its usual flight season of late September through to May.

These markings, although most often strikingly white can sometimes be orange or yellow, on a wing colour of rich reddish-brown or grey. Active in milder weather, the Satellite may be seen by torchlight nectaring on winter flowering shrubs, plants and berries, including that of Guelder Rose.

Night-feeding larvae hatch from April to June, feeding in early stages on the leaves of a wide variety of trees and hedgerow plants, such as sweet chestnut, oaks, field maple, blackthorn and hazel. Their diet becomes omnivorous as they reach the final stages of growth when they also feed on the larvae of Lepidoptera, aphids and other insects. When fully grown an underground cocoon is constructed, followed by the emergence of the adult moth two or three months later.

The first records for Dorset date from the 1930s and although still regarded as a fairly common species throughout much of England and Wales, it is thought that the loss of deciduous woodland over the past few decades have possibly led to its apparent decline locally. It may be seen in diverse habitats anywhere broadleaved trees and shrubs are found, such as parks, gardens, woodland and undisturbed wild places.

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The First Thanksgiving, 1621. Oil painting by Jean Louis Gerome Ferris (1932).

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BEE GRATEFUL

Paula Carnell, Beekeeping Consultant, Writer and Speaker

Ilove January. I know that many don’t. To me, it’s all about fresh starts, hope and renewed energy after a hopefully restful festive season! The slightly longer days make winter slightly more bearable. It is also a time to be grateful for the past year. No matter how tough, I believe there is always something, however small, to be grateful for. I remember one of the Januarys when I was bed-bound and particularly struggling with pain, frustration and all the other issues that come with chronic illness. I had been trying to think of what on earth I had to be grateful for when a blue tit started ‘visiting’ me. It was, as I later found, picking off the bugs from the spider’s web on the window of my bedroom. It didn’t seem like that though in my darkest days. It was pecking at and admiring its reflection, which I took to be looking and watching me. It shows how a different perspective alters everything – seeing the good as if everything is conspired for, not against, you.

In 2022 we spent another Thanksgiving dinner with our dear friends and my right-hand woman, Rande. She is from Minnesota so Thanksgiving is an absolute non-negotiable event. Each year she shares more information with us about what this very American celebration is all about. We learned that the first shared thanksgiving feast was between pilgrims to the ‘New World’ and the Native Americans in 1621. Probably like many Brits, we didn’t have a clue about the foundations of the November turkey dinner – our schools focussing on different periods of history. I loved this new insight and the images of the native population welcoming the newcomers, quite unlike the ‘cowboys and Indians’ narrative I grew up with. Studying herbal

medicine I also learned how many pilgrims survived purely on the kindness, generosity and wisdom of the Native Americans. Only when the newcomers kept on coming and taking more and more land and the country’s resources, did the Natives become less friendly.

I also learned at this time about the first bees that were taken to America. I had often wondered about bees and the USA, knowing that the Western honeybee, Apis mellifera, wasn’t native. More recently I learned that there are actually over 4000 bee species to be found in North America and the Melipona or stingless bee species was the only one that honey was harvested from. It was down to Europeans to bring skeps (straw baskets) of honey bees with them to populate the country. The natives called them ‘white man’s flies’ as they swarmed ahead of the settlers, gradually invading the country like their human keepers. Although I hadn’t looked deeply into the transportation of honeybees to many continents, not only America, I had imagined bees flying around the ships, and wondered how many survived, or were literally ‘lost at sea’.

I then came across a historical bee article describing the first recorded shipment of honeybees to Virginia on a merchant ship. The Virginia Company in London sent several skeps of honeybees in December 1621. This was of course the ideal time to send them, as they would have been dormant and more viable to transport. They were apparently kept in ‘hogsheads’ (barrels) or in crates and kept below deck where they would have remained cool and in their dormant state. The journey would have taken between 6 to 8 weeks. Eva Crane in her book ‘World History of Beekeeping and Honey Hunting’, writes about this shipment of bees sent with fruit trees, pigeons, rabbits and peacocks, as well as seeds. The boat used could have been the Bona Nova, Discovery or Hopewell. Each of those ships delivered between 20 and 50 settlers during that winter.

I am not sure that we should be grateful for the sending of western honeybees with settlers all around the world. Like many things in our history, we have to deal with the consequences and be grateful for them, rather than brood on regrets. Sadly, in many parts of America the pollination of major crops is dependent on the western honeybee due to the environment wiping out many of the 4000 other species that would have otherwise been pollinating for us. The sad fact is that the honeybee is no more resilient in these toxic environments than the other bumbles and solitary bees. It’s simply that because we ‘manage’ honeybees when they die, we can breed more, artificially maintaining their population. How much longer can this go on for?

Almonds are the first crop we think of in the pollination calendar, beginning to bloom in February in California. Over 1 million acres of this single crop need 1.6 million COLONIES of honeybees to pollinate them effectively. Each colony will be made up of around 50,000 bees. The pollination would be much more effective if using the native mason bees, who are between 100-200 times more effective pollinators due to their hairier bodies, and a million years of adaptations to make them the almond’s most effective pollinator!

The festive period is a time when many of us enjoy almonds – 80% of which were grown in this intensive system. If you truly want to be more hopeful and grateful for the work bees do, then boycotting food grown in a non-bee-friendly way is essential, and much quicker than awaiting for governments to change the laws. Our food is influenced by money and where we spend it, so to truly change, realise the value of your pound! Finally I am grateful for my TEDx talk going viral – now more people are aware of the importance of bees, and dandelions. If you don’t know what I am talking about then you must watch it!

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TEN RESOLUTIONS FOR A GREEN NEW YEAR

Peter Littlewood, Director, Young People’s Trust for the Environment

And so, with alarming speed, 2022 has come to an end and the new year is upon us. It’s traditionally a time for making resolutions - the changes we decide to have a go at making to our lives to make us better people. It might be that gym membership, a new diet, a new hobby or anything else for that matter. Interestingly, the internet tells me that fewer than half of all new year’s resolutions are being stuck to by six months into the new year, whilst a quarter are broken by the end of the first week. So what resolutions could you make to reconnect yourself with nature and to help protect our planet in 2023? These ideas are all completely off the top of my head and are provided with no kind of ranking:

1 Go for more walks in the countryside. Just being in natural surroundings makes us feel better, reducing stress and blood pressure and improving our sense of well-being and happiness. Since I tore my Achilles tendon back in October, this is one I’m going to struggle with until the spring, but I’m hoping to get back to regular walking then, thanks to the amazing team at Yeovil District Hospital. My days of crosscountry running though are, I fear, sadly over. 2 Try to make your garden more nature-friendly.

Having a more natural garden is a good excuse for doing less, but it’s also a great way to encourage more wildlife, especially insects and other mini beasts. Mow the lawn less, leave the leaves where they fall, create a woodpile or two and maybe add in a few nest boxes, or even a bug hotel. You can also find out about flowers and plants you could grow to help wildlife. Making your garden more beefriendly can really help. Bees have been in decline in recent years and they are responsible for pollinating crops we humans eat that are worth almost £700 million each year here in the UK alone!

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3 A bit of an add-on to the above, but you could put out some food for the birds, especially during the cold winter months and maybe put in a couple of bird feeders too. You could also create a water source, like a bird bath for the heat of the summer to come. 4 Eat more locally sourced produce. This cuts down on the carbon emissions caused by transporting foods long distances and supports farmers and growers in our local community. It often tastes better too! 5 Try to use your car less. This is a really difficult one for most of us in the villages around

Sherborne. There just isn’t much in the way of public transport and a lot of the roads are too intimidating to cycle on. But if you can walk or cycle instead of using your car, try to do that more. 6 Cut down on your flights. I’m not saying never fly anywhere, but try to keep journeys by air to a minimum - maybe once or twice per year. The

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amount of carbon emissions per passenger is higher for air travel than most other forms of transport, and because the distances flown are often very long, round trips can often result in emissions of over a tonne of carbon dioxide per passenger. The last time

I flew anywhere was in 2003, so I feel pretty good about this one! 7 I know I was saying this just before Christmas, but try to buy refurbished and secondhand items, rather than new, whenever you can. That could be for cars, technology, furniture or clothes, as just a few examples. By buying previously used items, we reduce the need for new items to be made, which reduces environmental damage. 8 Become a member of an environmental charity, like the Woodland Trust, RSPB or the Wildlife Trusts.

Find out about the work they do and find out if there is anything you can do to help. 9 Adopt an animal. In reality, this means providing an organisation that cares for a particular animal species, perhaps in the rainforest, with the funding they need to look after an animal for a year. It doesn’t mean you get a monkey for a pet! If you actually want to be able to visit your adopted animal, you could look at doing the same thing at a zoo here in the UK. 10 Try to cut down on the food you waste. Our food is responsible for about a quarter of our annual carbon footprints, so getting creative with leftovers and trying not to overbuy can make a big difference.

These are just a few suggestions. Try to keep at least one of these up for the whole of 2023, but the more you can manage, the better!

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