20 October 2009

'Insect hotels' to help encourage campus biodiversity

Ecologically aware students from the University of Dundee have taken steps to encourage biodiversity by creating a number of 'insect hotels' around campus.

The participants, members of the University’s branch of People and Planet - a network of UK students campaigning on world poverty, human rights and the environment - are trying to encourage students and staff to actively take part in conserving the planet for future generations.

Recognising that, for a number of reasons, solitary insects are having difficulty reproducing as a result, the group met to bore holes in old logs which will become the hotels and provide the perfect location for insects to lay their eggs.

They say that climate change and a number of other environmental factors are leading to a severe decrease in biodiversity and putting our food supply at risk. One unforeseen consequence of modern life is the impact of gardening and farming methods, according to People and Planet Dundee’s Kimberley Ellis.

She said, 'Since our gardens are so tidy, shrubs with hollow stems get cut down and leaves get raked away, with the result that insects have trouble reproducing because the natural place for them to lay their eggs is lost.'

'We know that this might not be the ideal time of year, but the insect hotels should be around for a few years and will help provide insects with the environment to reproduce successfully.'

The plight of the common bee is of particular concern to environmentalists fighting to protect and encourage biodiversity. The world’s bee population has been in stark decline for several years, and their importance to the pollination process is such that some experts have warned that if bees were to become extinct, humans could follow them within four years.

Kimberley said, in addition to encouraging biodiversity on campus, the insect hotels would help to increase awareness of the group’s activities and hopefully encourage more students and staff to get involved.

'This is just one of the activities that the group take part in,' she said. 'We’d love to see more people get involved in projects like swap shops, awareness-raising campaigns, film nights etc.'

Anyone interested in the insect hotels, and other People and Planet Dundee initiatives can find out more by contacting Kimberley at k.ellis@dundee.ac.uk.

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