Act now for wildlife

Gardeners across the UK have been stepping up to support wildlife and combat related issues such as climate change. GW Wildlife Editor Kate Bradbury reveals the results of this year's review, celebrating successes and exploring how we can all help

- Kate Bradbury

"Climate change is an increasing worry for gardeners, as more of us are noticing the weather patterns affecting wildlife"

The year 2024 was not good for our wildlife. The charity Butterfly Conservation declared a Butterfly Emergency and the Bumblebee Conservation Trust announced bumblebee were in crisis, after both insect groups suffered their worst year on record. No surprises, then, to see that respondents to our latest wildlife review reported similar crashes in insect numbers - overall, 47 per cent saw fewer insects and invertebrates in their gardens in 2024 compared to 2023. But how did the birds and hedgehogs get on? After a wet winter, a cold, wet spring and then a largely wet summer, were there any wildlife winners, or did our silent borders reflect wider losses in the natural world? It's clear that climate change is becoming an increasing worry for gardeners, as more of us are noticing the different weather patterns affecting wildlife. For the first time, we asked respondents if they were concerned about climate, and if they had noticed climate change in their garden. We also looked into the potential link between concern and day-to-day behaviours. Results suggest we're quite a clued-up bunch of gardeners, and we really do care about our wildlife.

A tough year for bees

Some 51 per cent of respondents saw bees less often in 2024 compared to 2023, marking a huge drop in perceived numbers, and more respondents think they saw bees later as compared to earlier in the year. Interestingly, 31 per cent have noticed a change to their garden wildlife that they attribute to climate change, with observations focused on the decline in bees and invertebrates that will have been affected by heavy rain, and the impact of cold spring temperatures on bees' ability to find food and keep their nests going.