Earlier this week, on World Bee Day, we made our latest donation to the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. We also wanted to share a bit about their work, and an update from their recently released BeeWalk findings.
Their BeeWalk is a UK-wide citizen science scheme run by the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. Volunteers walk a set route each month between March and October, recording the bumblebees they see to help monitor how populations are changing over time.
2025 BeeWalk results
BBCT’s BeeWalk is a national citizen science programme, with 984 trained volunteers surveying 1,109 routes across the UK in 2025.
Positive trends
2025 saw some recovery from 2024’s lowest recorded year, with a few encouraging signs:
- The Bilberry bumblebee recorded its best year to date
- The Shrill carder bumblebee (England’s rarest species) recorded its highest survey count. In Kent, Essex and South Wales, Shrill carder records continue to highlight the value of focused conservation work. It was also recorded at RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Essex, extending its known recorded range
- The Brown-banded carder bumblebee continues to show a steady upward trend year on year
Areas of concern
Despite this recovery, five of the UK’s 24 bumblebee species declined even further, with 15 species still below their long-term average.
Even with an exceptionally warm spring and summer, several familiar species, including Red-tailed and White-tailed bumblebees, continue to show long-term declines.
Conservation work
BBCT’s work spans monitoring, education and habitat restoration on the ground. In 2025, the Bumblebee Conservation Trust:
- improved over 500 hectares of land for bumblebees
- supported 27 schools to achieve their bumblebee-friendly schools award
- coordinated the BeeWalk monitoring programme with hundreds of volunteers
- successfully campaigned to end the use of bee-harming pesticides
Dr Richard Comont, Science Manager at BBCT, said:
“Bumblebees showed some signs of recovery in 2025, but the fact that even the sunniest spring on record couldn’t return numbers to normal is a stark warning. Our countryside and towns are increasingly unfriendly to bumblebees, and good weather can only help them so far. We need to take urgent action to support our bumblebee populations, including restoring flower-rich habitats and reducing pesticide use, in order to improve the environment in which they, and we, live.”
The Trust is urging people to create more flower-rich habitat for our vital pollinators, and support nature-friendly management in both urban and rural areas. They have lots of resources on how we can all help to 'bee the change' in our area.
Wildflower seed packs
When we created our wildflower seed gift packs, we worked with BBCT to help guide our choices and ensure the seeds we use are genuinely beneficial for pollinators.
Consequently, our mix of wildflowers includes only native species, grown without neonicotinoids and includes flowers that bloom early and late in the season to ensure the bees have food throughout the year.
These beautiful packs can be included with our sympathy cards, offering veterinary practices a simple way to provide a thoughtful addition for their clients, while also helping to create small pockets of wildflowers that support pollinators within local neighbourhoods across the Country.
It is a small action, but one that sits alongside the wider conservation work needed to support the environments that pollinators depend on.
Thank you
Thank you to all the customers who choose to include our wildflower seed packs in their orders.
Your support helps create more flowers for pollinators across the country, and also enables us to continue donating to BBCT’s important conservation work. 💛
You can browse our matching wildflower packs available here, or if you are considering using them in your practice or organisation you can order a sample pack here.