Mackay residents being urged to do our part to help save native bees in the region.
As part of World Bee Day, Mackay Regional Council is launching the ‘Save the bees, get rid of the trees’ initiative to reduce the number of toxic African tulip trees in the region.
The trees, which have eye-catching red flowers, are extremely harmful and often fatal to native stingless bees.
Mayor Greg Williamson said a quick check of your yard can help protect the local environment and biodiversity.
“What we want people to do is have a look in their gardens and see if there are any African tulip tree saplings there. If there are, residents simply need to remove the plant and responsibly dispose of it,” Mayor Williamson said.
“We want people to place any plants under 50-centimeters into a plastic bag and then dispose of it in the general waste bin. This will stop the spread of any seeds of suckers, which could happen if the plant is placed into green waste,” he said.
“The trees tend to establish themselves in areas that are difficult to access, like between sheds and fences, so it’s much better to remove them while they are small. These trees can reach up to 24-metres high, so it can be very costly and difficult to remove them if they are allowed to grow.”
Councillor Peter Sheedy said World Bee Day was the ideal time to launch the initiative.
“Not only does it highlight the threat this plant poses to a native species, but it falls at a time of year when the trees aren’t flowering prolifically,” Cr Sheedy said.
“We want to build up more community awareness of this really problematic pest for our native bees, that play a critical role in pollinating plants,” he said.
“Pollination is crucial to achieving food security, as three out of four crops producing fruits or seeds for human consumption rely in part on pollinators.”
To play your part, simply identify juvenile trees or saplings, place them in a bag and tie-off or seal it and dispose of the bag into your general waste bin.
For larger plants or established trees, residents should engage an arborist to properly remove them.
