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The Ivy Bee

4 Extra Debut. Chris Sperring and Richard Comont are in Oxfordshire to seek out a new inhabitant to British shores - the ivy bee. From 2013.

Chris Sperring accompanies entomologist Richard Comont to Dry Sandford Pitts in Oxfordshire in search of a relative newcomer to the UK.

Only named as a new species in 1993 and first recorded on British shores in 2001 the ivy bee (Colletes hederae) has been working its way north ever since.

A real autumnal species the ivy bee is only active between September and November so its short year begins and ends within the space of a few weeks.

As the name suggests its primary food source is the pollen from ivy blossom – the last of the year's flowers. Male ivy bees emerge first in order to be ready for the first females. Unmated females are pounced on my several males all attempting to be the first to mate with her.

Unlike honeybees or bumble bees the ivy bee is solitary – the female prepares a nest-hole on her own in which to lay her eggs which she will provision with ivy pollen. Whilst the ivy bee is solitary they tend to dig their nest holes in large aggregations, sometimes in the thousands, in suitable sloping sandy banks.

The ivy bee seems to be bucking the trend of general decline in bee populations and spreading northwards as its range expands.

Dry Sandford Pits is one of the most northerly of its known locations. Where will it be spotted next?

Producer: Ellie Sans

First broadcast on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 4 in November 2013.

Available now

20 minutes

Last on

Thu 21 Oct 2021 02:30

Richard Comont

Richard Comont

Richard Comont is an ecologist and entomologist based in Oxfordshire.Ìý He has been interested in insects, particularly bees, moths and beetles, from a very early age and has recently finished his PhD at the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and Oxford University, studying the Harlequin ladybird.ÌýÌýHe will soon be takingÌýa position with the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, running the Trusts's citizen science bee monitoring scheme - BeeWalks.

Ìý

The picture shows Richard Comont on the left with presenter Chris Sperring on the right.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 3 Nov 2013 06:35
  • Wed 20 Oct 2021 14:30
  • Thu 21 Oct 2021 02:30

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