Dr Amir Khan, star of Channel 5’s ‘GPs Behind Closed Doors’ and keen conservationist has joined forces with two leading UK wildlife charities to urge people to become ‘Nature Doctors’ in their own gardens by planting for pollinators this year.
97% of our wildflower meadows have been eradicated since World War II. Homes for butterflies, bumblebees and moths are disappearing, and their populations are plummeting. They are, quite simply, running out of places to go.
Dr Khan is working alongside Butterfly Conservation and Bumblebee Conservation Trust to launch a new campaign asking people to set up their own ‘Insect A&E’ areas in their gardens for the benefit of the nation’s struggling pollinators. Places where these threatened but vitally important insects can rest, recuperate and rejuvenate.
According to a recent survey, 84% of UK adults are concerned about damage to the natural environment, and 56% about local biodiversity loss. Many are keen to take action to tackle these problems but need advice on which plants to grow in their own gardens to support our native biodiversity.
Dr Khan said,“As a nature lover I am delighted to join with these brilliant organisations in asking people to act now for wildlife. Simply by choosing some of these plants, people’s gardens can become a haven for pollinators, or even… a hospital they can recover in. Anyone can build an Insect A&E and help these amazing and precious creatures.
“Plus being in nature has many tangible beneficial physical and mental effects so why not get out there, relax and reconnect with nature by planting your own Insect A&E? It’s so easy and it helps so much.
“Butterflies, moths and bumblebees are an essential part of our eco-system. They are an important element of the food chain and are prey for birds, bats and other insectivorous animals. Their habitat is rapidly decreasing, and their numbers are declining and so we must act now to help them rest, recuperate and rejuvenate in our own gardens.”
For more information see: www.butterfly-conservation.org/insectae.
