New evidence shows UK solar parks can provide for bees and butterflies - Lancaster University
A new study shows that UK solar parks, if managed correctly, can provide vital resources to help stem the decline in the nation’s bees and butterflies.
The new research, led by scientists at Lancaster University and in collaboration with the University of Reading, has been published in the journal Ecological Solutions and Evidence. It provides the first peer-reviewed field data of insect pollinators at solar parks in the UK, covering 15 sites.
The scientists recorded around 1,400 pollinators across more than 30 species, including nearly 900 butterflies, more than 170 hoverflies, more than 160 bumble bees, as well as moths and honeybees.
The most commonly observed species was the meadow brown butterfly. Bumble bees were observed at two thirds of the solar parks, while the small heath butterfly, a priority biodiversity species, was observed at three of the solar parks.
Their field data, gathered through repeated surveys during the summer of 2021, shows two critical factors are at play in determining whether solar parks can become beneficial to pollinators – the flowering plants available to pollinators within solar farms and the characteristics of the surrounding landscape.
The availability of a greater diversity of flowering plant species was a key factor in increased pollinator abundance and biodiversity within solar parks. Parks containing a wider variety of flowering plants saw increased numbers of bumblebees, butterflies and hoverflies.
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Posted On: 27/02/2024