Donal Hickey: It’s in our interest to help bees

Even people with only a slight interest in the natural world seem to be talking these days about varied weather in winter and early spring, which is again highlighting the effects of climate change on animal and plant behaviour.

With temperatures hitting 17 degrees Centigrade in February, reaching record levels in some places, I saw bees and some butterflies going about their business as they emerged quite early from winter hibernation.