I am incredibly lucky to live in North Wales, especially as a country, Wales is acknowledged globally as the stronghold for several of the rarest invertebrates in the UK. Home to iconic and threatened species found nowhere else in Britain from rare Stoneflies in the River Dee to the Cliff Mason Bee.
These tiny creatures often overlooked are vitally important to our ecosystems, which in turn provide us with food, clean water and biodiverse landscapes. Encircling Wrexham are outlying areas of ecologically rich and diverse habitats from woodlands and wetlands along the Dee Valley to dry heath and blanket bog on the foothills to the West.
Key as these 17 Important Invertebrate Areas are; individually it may seem insignificant but collectively our gardens provide more than all the parks and reserves put together in Britain. It is a balance between human activity and caring for our environment. We are fond of our birds and bees, butterflies and hedgehogs but equally important, vital to biodiversity are those creatures we often don't see. Invertebrates (without a backbone) include the nematodes (worms) and slugs in the soil, moths, beetles, spiders and the woodlice munching on decaying matter. We are urged not to spray pesticides and insecticides, to save water, use peat- free compost and grow wildlife friendly plants. .
If like me you don't have much ground space I'm trying to grow a wildlife hanging basket this year. Planted up with mostly single petalled blooms to attract nectar loving invertebrates. If my seedlings are successful I hope to include some of these:
- Calibrachoa
- Trailing Lobelia
- Sweet Pea Cupid Mix
- Diascia
- Petunia 'Express'
- Heliotrope
- Verbena pendula