This month saw the culmination of very worth-while project in partnership with another branch and a school. We were contacted a month or so ago by Miallo State School whose students were engaged in a Sustainability project. We visited the school and gave a presentation which really in-creased their desire to become carers for a native bee hive.
Not long after this, Liz Lang and team from Cassowary Coast had the opportunity to perform a res-cue of a Sapiens hive into a Cairns Branch empty box. We let the hive re-establish itself and were pleased to see all of the important features of a healthy hive: stores, brood, high bee numbers, and a healthy queen!
This week we presented this hive to the students involved in the Sustainability project. They have created a stand for the hive to protect it from weather, and also planted many native plants and herb seedlings to keep the bees happy.
Raising awareness and helping educate the community about our native bees is part of our Mission Statement and it was wonderful to see this come to fruition in such a positive manner.
We hope to have the opportunity to gift native bee hives to other schools in the future. Anyone in the Cairns region who has accessible native bees in need of rescue/relocation, please contact us.
We have also been able to source a local company who will stitch the ANBA Cairns branch logo onto a shirt for us. Anyone can now take a shirt into Cardzilla at Manoora Cairns and have the logo stitched in any colour. Cost is $10 per shirt (minimum of 2 items). We hope many members take the opportunity to have the Association represented on their favourite clothing!
Still no word from the Cairns Council on the results of our application for funds as part of the Climate Change / Sustainability Grant. Hopefully there will be exciting news to share in the next Cross Pollinator.
Our next meeting date and venue will be advertised in the next Cross Pollinator and online.
From: Stewart Clarke sclarkehk@gmail.com, Chair and Representative to ANBA
Cairns Native Bee Association Facebook group,
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1269746467098269/
