Citizen science with the mission to preserve and develop pollinator habitats

Beekeepers' knowledge is important in the work of evaluating the landscape

Citizen science uses local knowledge and experience. At the various locations, beekeepers, farmers, landowners and the general public interested in nature are involved. The goal is to develop measures and activities that ensure there is both food and shelter throughout the season.

Through systematic inventories and assessments, you can get a picture of the situation for pollinators in a specific area. The Flora & Fauna project seeks to strengthen the beekeeping sector byinvestigating how sustainable landscapes can be developed—specifically, landscapes that provide pollen and nectar continuously during the season. This is a key prerequisite for good bee health.

As part of this work, we are developing a toolbox that beekeepers can use to evaluate and inventory the landscape. By contributing pollen samples, we are enable comparisons between pollen data and the floral inventory. 

IIn addition to supporting dialogue on how to improve forage availability for honeybees throughout the season, the inventory can also provide a picture of the situation for other pollinators in the same area.

The initiator of Flora & Fauna citizen science , Lotta Fabricius Kristiansen, has extensive experience as a beekeeper and runs an apiary in Tjällmo, Östergötland together with her husband Preben. For the past seven years, she has been working at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences,(SLU) where the Flora & Fauna initiative forms part of her doctoral research.

Local involvement in four locations in the country:

SMÅLAND
Gränna Beekeepers Association

ÖSTERGÖTLAND
Linköping Nature Center
Vreta Kluster
Hushållningssällskapet

VÄRMLAND
Kristinehamnsorten Beekeepers Association

MEDELPAD
Sundsvall Beekeepers Association

The Flora & Fauna podcast follows local groups of beekeapers and captures developments

Introduction film to Flora & Fauna citizen science