Posted on Monday 10th February 2025
Ashy Mining Bee. Credit: Bailey Carswell-Morris
Work to create more ‘bee beaches’ and restore historic heathland habitats is being carried out across the West Midlands.
This conservation effort is part of the Purple Horizons Nature Recovery Project, led by Natural England. The work involves using diggers to remove vegetation and create bare ground areas - known as ‘bee beaches’ - which are crucial habitats for many threatened pollinators.
This project has created even more bee-friendly habitats across seven sites: Shire Oak Park, Barr Beacon, Pelsall North Common, Chasewater Country Park, Brownhills Common, Wharf Lane and Muckley Corner.
The work is being delivered in partnership between Staffordshire County Council, Walsall Council, Lichfield District Council, Natural England, researchers at the University of Birmingham, and the Birmingham and Black Country Wildlife Trust.
Victoria Wilson, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Culture, said:
“Creating these ‘bee beaches’ is a fantastic example of how we’re working to protect rare species and support biodiversity at Chasewater Country Park.
“By restoring these vital habitats, we’re helping pollinators, butterflies, and reptiles to thrive in what is an internationally important landscape. Small actions like this make a big difference, not only to wildlife but to the long-term health of our natural environment.”
Councillor Gary Flint, Portfolio Holder for Wellbeing, Leisure, and Public Spaces at Walsall Council, said:
“It is so pleasing to see this amazing work continuing in our borough.
"The remarkable presence of two nationally threatened bee species, the Cats Ear Mining Bee and Nomad Bee, is a testament to how effective the restoration has been.
“Walsall is proud to play its part environmental conservation, and the discovery of thriving bee populations serve as a clear indicator of the positive impact of our long-standing restoration program.”
Nationally, around 80% of heathlands have been lost since 1800 and globally the habitat is rarer than a tropical rainforest.
The Purple Horizons project aims to connect green spaces to allow the area’s reptiles, birds, and pollinators to move and thrive, which is crucial for the future climate-resilience of local species.
The bee beaches have already been used by rare species including the Tormentil Mining Bee (Andrena tarsata), a national priority species considered Endangered in Europe and the Spotted Dark Bee (Stelis ornatula), which has only been seen once before in this area.
Emma Johnson, Midlands Deputy Director at Natural England said:
“Nature recovery involves a range of organisations coming together. In this project to help pollinators, Natural England supplies advice and funding, the local authorities manage the sites, the University of Birmingham gathers scientific evidence, and the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham and the Black Country provides botanical expertise and engages with local communities.
“It's wonderful to see that, by pulling together, we can make such a difference and so quickly as shown by the rare Tormentil Mining Bee already using the habitats we created last winter.”