The conservation and enhancement of bumblebees in intensively farmed landscapes

摘要

Bumblebees provide an important pollination service for many crops and wild flowers, but intensive farming has contributed to declines in the abundance and range of several bumblebee species across Europe. Here we review research which has underpinnedthe development of prescriptions to benefit bumblebees in intensively managed landscapes. Analysis of national scale plant species datasets has shown that bumblebee forage plants experienced significantly greater declines than other native species during the 20~(th) Century. At the 1 km scale, 76% of forage plants declined in frequency, including those of particular value for threatened bumblebee species. As a result, agri-environment prescriptions were developed to provide suitable foraging resourcesand nesting habitats within arable and grassland systems. Monitoring has confirmed that the abundance and diversity of foraging bumblebees is significantly enhanced by sowing a targeted, legume-based 'pollen and nectar' mixture along field margins. Farmer training and technology transfer between policy, scientific and agronomic sectors will be important for successful scheme implementation.