As the nights get darker and colder, a lot of our familiar wildlife enjoyed throughout the summer start to disappear. Some birds migrate, some mammals hibernate, but did you know many of our minibeasts also go into a type of hibernation known as diapause? The fantastic variety of minibeasts, including many solitary bees, ladybirds, as well as iconic butterflies like the Peacock and Red Admirals living in your garden need somewhere to hide away and snuggle up to survive. During this period of diapause, their temperature drops and their heart rate slows as they sleep, but shelter to safely do this can be hard to find in tidy gardens.
Building a minibeast hotel is our third pledge for wildlife, see them all here.