Exciting new bee discovery has been made on the north coast of Cornwall.

Surveys undertaken by Buglife and the National Trust at Godrevy Farm, near Gwithian have led to the exciting discovery of the nationally scarce Red Bartsia Bee at the site. Previously this bee had only been known from one other site in Cornwall where the first Cornish record for the bee in 20 years was made back in 2022.

The Red Bartsia Bee (Melitta tricincta) was found at Godrevy by local entomologist Paddy Saunders and Nick Holden from the National Trust. This discovery is likely the direct result of conservation work undertaken by Buglife’s North Cornwall B-Lines project in 2022 where the Red Bartsia plant was introduced to the site from seed harvested from a nearby farm.

“I was extremely pleased to find Red Bartsia Bee at Godrevy National Trust this year,” says Paddy.“We found both males and females which was great as this indicated the bee had colonised following us sowing the foodplant.”

Paddy was impressed that this small bee could immediately sniff out their host plant, especially because the nearest known colony is over one kilometre away. “This is good evidence that simple interventions to conserve threatened bees can be effective very quickly,” Paddy concluded.

National Trust area ranger at Godrevy, Nick Holden, said, “We are absolutely delighted to be continuing the B-Lines partnership work with Buglife. It is inspiring to work with such a knowledgeable and dedicated organisation. Working together with local landowners, schools and volunteers has delivered great results in our grasslands, enhancing species richness and increasing habitats for specialist bees that are under threat in the landscape. We are committed to continue this successful project long into the future so that incredible species such as the Red Bartsia Bee may expand their range on the Cornish Coast.”