UK Nature and Environment

They work as hard as bees to pollinate our plants, often look and sound like bees but have no sting – yet hoverflies remain the unsung heroes of our gardens.

Now, The Wildlife Trusts and the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) are calling on gardeners across the country to help save hoverflies, through this year’s Wild About Gardens campaign, by making room for these beneficial insects in our gardens this summer by building log piles, planting flowers and creating shallow ponds.

Hoverflies come in many shapes and sizes and are often mistaken for bees, wasps and hornets. Many of these insect workers, which are as critical for our food security as bees, are now endangered, the charities warn.