Most UK bees are solitary species whose welfare depends on access to appropriate nesting habitat that has been drastically reduced.
Solitary bee welfare requires nesting habitat that is almost entirely absent from modern intensively managed landscapes. Bare soil, exposed south-facing banks, and dead wood are essential resources for different species that have been eliminated by tidiness in gardens and fields. Individual bees denied nesting sites experience reproductive failure — an evolutionary welfare failure of high significance. Creating appropriate nesting habitat is simple, cost-free, and directly benefits welfare across dozens of species simultaneously.