The theme for this year’s Science Week was Seeds of Science – focusing on sustainable food production. We rely on pollinators (insects, birds and mammals) to help flowers develop into the seeds, fruits and vegetables that form the major part of our healthy diet. Students spent the week searching for pollinators visiting the gardens on Campus, recording weather conditions and identifying anything we found on or around flowers throughout the day. By the end of Science Week, we had observed 221 individual pollinators from 22 species and 9 genera (the larger groups of similar species).

Highlights from the survey were:

• European Honeybees appeared in the greatest numbers and were the only pollinator to show up in every survey. They provide an excellent role in pollination, but also pose a threat to our Australian pollinators by aggressively dominating flower resources.
• When sunny skies were accompanied by rapid temperature increases, the response in pollinator numbers and diversity rose dramatically and quickly.
• The worst conditions for pollinators are a combination of low temperatures, wind, cloudy skies and rainfall.
• Five new species were added to the Pilgrim School species list for the first time as a result of the survey. 

In a time where the media can provide a gloomy view of what is happening to the world around us, it is beautiful for students to see first-hand that there is so much to discover going on around us every day in God’s creation, and to marvel at the beauty and diversity that speaks to the continued breath of life that flows through all living things. The photos show the students at work and some of the pollinators they discovered.