Love your bugs!

Dr Saul Cunningham leads the bug diversity field walk and seminar.

"Love your bugs!" This is the catch cry, and the final words of advice from CSIRO scientist, Dr Saul Cunningham, at his Bugs Biodiversity workshop at the Baynton Hall last month. 

About 50 people attended this event hosted by North Central Catchment Management Authority and the Baynton Sidonia Landcare Group as part of the 'Protecting, linking and enhancing priority remnants in the Kyneton Woodland' project.

Dr Cunningham spoke of the practical aspects of insect habitat during a walk on a nearby property which has been only lightly grazed and where fallen trees have been left in place, thereby providing habitat for a myriad of insects. 

Scientific data demonstrate that insects have the most effective mechanisms in the world to assist in nitrogen transfer, soil infiltration and pollination. Because of their variety, adaptability and enormous numbers (there are over 10 million varieties of insect, and probably more), their impact is more rapid and positive than say that of birds. 

Typically, we think of biodiversity as involving exotic birds, vulnerable whales or magnificent rainforests. But biodiversity really takes the form of millions of small creatures, like insects. Dr Cunningham's presentation focused on the positive role of insects in soil improvement, pest control and pollination.

Soil improvement is a key consideration to many in our area, and insects are a critical part of the process and speed up the work of the microbes. They also increase the infiltration rate of moisture into the ground - by as much as 30 per cent. 

How can we assist in achieving this improvement on our land?

· Reduce or avoid wide spectrum insecticides;

· Leave appropriate levels of soil residue;

· Increase heterogeneity in the landscape, i.e. ensure a variety of crops/grazing/native vegetation;

· Allow for patches of non-agricultural land, e.g. road margins, drainage areas, revegetation. No matter how small, these 'islands' will provide a breeding habitat for insects, allowing them to carryout their beneficial works.

Pest control by insects is efficient because generally it is carried out by other insects. Providing non-agricultural patches in the landscape helps support the predator insect communities that provide pest control.

Insect pollination is Dr Cunningham's area of expertise and he noted that pollination by insects affects both the quality and quantity of most orchard and broadacre fruit and seed crops (with the exception of grains). Bees are the key pollinators as they focus on flowers. Insect communities typically contain a few major species and a large number of smaller representations. It is this constant diversity which can be of such value in agriculture i.e. many species doing a job is better than one, and this diversity is most likely to provide a service under a wider range of conditions and in the face of adversity. 

What can we do to assist insects to work for us?

· Provide patches of non-agricultural land e.g. scattered or isolated trees, and fencelines adjacent to grazing land; these will serve as both food and nesting options. 

· Avoid broad spectrum insecticides.

· Encourage patch heterogeneity e.g. smaller field sizes.

The imported honey bee also needs to be managed. The arrival of the Varroa Mite is imminent in Australia, having already decimated honey bee populations elsewhere in the world. Research published by scientists including Dr Cunningham clearly demonstrates that wild bees (which are not affected by the Varroa Mite) are more important to production than honey bees. 

We live in a human-modified landscape where land use is intensifying and therefore biodiversity is reducing. How do we achieve biodiversity?

· Protect isolated trees

· Fencelines and paddock margins

· Reduce broad spectrum insecticides

· Manage soil erosion

· Off-farm influence by the community to encourage all of the above.

Everything we do is a help to get it started.

Many small contributions add up across the landscape to make an impact.

This event was funded through the Australian Government's Clean Energy Future Biodiversity Fund.