Volunteers scythe Muchelney Abbey meadows to boost rare shrill carder bees
Traditional hand scything at a Somerset abbey aims to help the rare shrill carder bee, with volunteers paid in bread, cheese and cider.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
Conservation work at Muchelney Abbey in Somerset is turning to an ancient method to help one of Britain's rarest bumblebees. Volunteers, trained by English Heritage, are using hand scythes to manage the site's meadows, rather than tractors or strimmers, in the hope of boosting the local population of the shrill carder bee.
Joseph O'Shea, from the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, was among those scything at the abbey near Langport. He explained that traditional management enhances floral diversity in a sensitive way. "By managing meadows in a traditional way we're able to really enhance the floral diversity of the meadow in a sensitive way that is sort of integral to the fabric of the site as well," he said.
Mechanised cutting, he argued, is too fast and gives nothing a chance to recover. "By having mechanisation on here, it's so fast that it's not giving anything a chance to get away. So by doing it slowly with scythes it's just a bit more sensitive."
The shrill carder bee is named for its very high-pitched note. It is one of 24 bumblebee species in the UK and is the rarest. O'Shea said: "So the shrill carda is one of 24 species we have in the UK and it is our rarest. So in Somerset last year we found two. That just underlines quite how rare it is." He stressed that bumblebees are integral to ecosystems and food systems, adding: "The more bees we can save the better and when we've got a rare species we really need to be doing everything we can."
The project also revives a traditional perk. The scythers, following the custom of old days, are paid with bread, cheese and cider. The work is part of a wider effort to encourage a species that has been in decline for years. English Heritage is running the training, and the mowing is carried out entirely by hand to keep the meadow habitat suitable for the bees to thrive.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | BBC One |
|---|---|
| Hand scything is used to encourage a rare bumblebee species that has been in decline. | |
| Only two shrill carder bees were found in Somerset last year. | |
| The shrill carder bee is the rarest of the 24 bumblebee species in the UK. |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The report focuses on the traditional, hands-on nature of the conservation work, highlighting the volunteer effort and the nostalgic payment of bread, cheese and cider. It gives a personal touch through an interview with a trust expert and stresses the extreme rarity of the bee, making the story both practical and human interest oriented.
- “Modern day meadows in Somerset are to be kept in shape with the centuries-old practice of scything in the hope that it ups the numbers of a rare bumblebee.”
- “The best bit, like the old days, the scythers get paid with bread, cheese and cider.”
- “So the shrill carda is one of 24 species we have in the UK and it is our rarest. So in Somerset last year we found two.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.