OUGD603 - Brief 7 - Build a home for Wildlife - Research - Wildlife Research

Wildlife Research 

Bees

- needed alongside insects to pollinate fruit and vegetables
- without bees it would cost £1.8 billion a year to pollinate crops
- food prices would rise
- pollinate three quarters of wildflowers
- Honey bees and bumblebees are social with a queen, male drones and female worker bees
- solitary bees are smaller, usually come in pairs and work alone 
- bumblebees have black and yellow stripes 
- 1 in 10 bee species could go extinct
- changes in land use, habitat loss, disease, pesticides, farming, pollution, invasive non native plant and animal species and climate change have contributed to the decline in bees
- nectar rich flowers are an importnat supply of food for bees. Window boxes provide a way of introducing flowers into cities
- there are 200 species of solitary bees who nest in hollow stems, making bee hotels ideal habitats
- 270 species of bees have been recorded in the UK 
- honeybees are the only type of bee to be kept in hives, the rest of the species are wild 
- Bumblebees live in holes in the ground or tree cavities 
- solitary bees include mining bees which nest in the ground, mason bees and leafcutter bees which live in holes in dead wood, banks and walls
- some plants can only be pollinated by certain bees
- bees like sugared water 

Butterflies

- the four stages to a butterfly lifecycle include egg, larva (caterpillar), pupa (chrysalis) and adult 
- eggs are glued to leaves 
- most are herbivores
- caterpillars shed their outer layer of skin while attached to a leaf or twig
- when adult butterflies emerge they have to wait for their wings to dry and fill with fluid so that they can fly 
- adults can live for a week or up to a year depending on the species
- they have four wings 
- brightly coloured wings made from scales
- eat nectar from flowers
- taste receptors on feet 
- 56 species in UK
- have a long coiled tongue
- lay eggs on specific plants with different species prefering different plants 
- identify plants through sight, smell, taste. Plants give off chemicals telling the butterflies whether they are the right type for food 
- eaten by mammals, birds, spider and other insects
- attract mates with colour and avoid predators 
- raise body temperature by basking in the sun 
- has thousands of lenses in their eyes
- some migrate from Europe such as the Clouded Yellow and Painted Lady 
- most British species are localised
- some use mimicry to blend in with their surroundings e.g. black hairstreak and comma look like bird droppings 
- colour is also used to hide from predators e.g. green hairstreak blends with a leaf 
- some caterpillars warn predators through colour e.g. large white larva uses blacks and yellows 
- caterpillars also use chemicals 
- pollinate flowers 
- plants and flowers needed for food 
- tall grasses preferred by butterflies 
- need flower throughout the season 
- stinging nettles are loved by butterflies 
- butterfly habitats and feeders useful 

Hedgehogs

- they don't have good eyesight but very good hearing and sense of smell
- their name comes from their foraging habits
- have 5000 spines approx which last a year
- they are the gardeners friend 
- they hibernate in winter
- they are lactose intolerant
- collective noun 'an array of hedgehogs'
- they can run 6 feet per second

Bats 

- they use echolocation to navigate and hunt insects during the night. The bats make noises and listen for the sound waves which bounce off objects which tells them where and how far objects are away from them
- can roost on their own or with a colony  
- pipistrelle bats eat up to 3000 insects a night 
- they live up to 30 years and have one baby a year
- only mammal capable of continued flight
- they are nocturnal

Birds

Blue Tits

- common across Britain 
- favourite habitat broad leaved woodland, as well as gardens 
- 98% of gardens have visits from Blue Tits in the winter
- nesting boxes have helped Blue Tit numbers increase as well as extra food 
- they often stay in the area that they hatched 
- cats are a big reason for Blue Tit deaths 
- starvation after fledging is high 
- both males and females look similar however the male is brighter especially the blue on its head 
- it is the only Tit to have blue colouration
- they breed in spring 
- there can be 7 - 13 eggs in a clutch however these are usually smaller in gardens
- often nest in a hole in a tree 
- in summer they eat mainly insects, in winter seeds and insects 

Frogs

- smooth skin that can be grey, olive green and yellow to brown. They have dark blotches and dark stripe around their eye and eardrum, and dark stripes on their legs 
- their skin can become lighter or darker to match their habitat 
- common across Britain 
- most active at night
- hibernate in winter 
- breathe through skin and lungs 
- males croak to attract females. The male fertilises the laid eggs ('rafts' of spawn)
- tadpoles grow (metamorphosis) into froglets over 16 weeks
- they eat snails, slugs, worms and insects 
- breed in spring 
- feed in woodland, gardens, hedgerows
- like garden ponds
- wildlife friendly ponds and log piles are important for frogs


https://friendsoftheearth.uk/bees/20-facts-you-need-know-about-bees
https://friendsoftheearth.uk/bees/why-do-we-need-bees
https://www.wwf.org.uk/updates/how-bee-friendly
https://www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/fun-facts-about-bats
http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/animals/bat.html
https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/other-garden-wildlife/amphibians-and-reptiles/common-frog/
https://www.buzzfeed.com/ailbhemalone/essential-facts-about-hedgehogs
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/amphibians/common-frog
https://www.livingwithbirds.com/tweetapedia/21-facts-on-blue-tit
http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/animals/butterfly.html
https://www.wildlifeworld.co.uk/butterflies/