When we think of biodiversity, it’s hard to think of highway approaches in the first place. However, a few meters from the A20, Laurent Chabrol is studying wild bee populations. At the edge of the four tracks, pollinators find a little corner of paradise. “It is the only refuge where bees can find both food and breeding sites. We found 82 species of bees on the highway embankments.specifies the director CPIE Corrèze.
Little in common with their domestic cousins
Wild bees have little in common with their domestic cousins. They do not live in hives, and do not make honey. “They are much more specialized (…) and can move over very long distances“, explains Stéphane Vassel, coordinator of the action plan on pollinators in Limousin. 30 years ago, the construction of the A20 motorway destroyed the local ecosystem. Since then, life has resumed. In France, the decline of wild pollinators is estimated at 75%.