More butterflies and bees thanks to sinus mowing
In 2022, a study was conducted on the Hondsbossche Zeewering to investigate the effect of sinus mowing on the composition of vegetation and the presence of butterflies and bees. For comparison purposes, a quarter of the dike length was mowed in the traditional manner and 75% was mowed using sinus mowing. The pilot project started in 2016.
The sinus management on the Hondsbossche sea defense shows both positive and negative results. The experiment shows significantly more butterflies and bees in the sinus-managed dike sections than in the control dike sections. The species richness of typical bee species in dune and coastal areas is also increasing. This is probably also due to the new dune area on the sea side of the barrier.
Focus on sinus management
Sinus management itself still requires ongoing attention. In the first four years of the experiment (2016-2019), the grass clippings in the sinus sections were not removed. This resulted in considerable undesirable overgrowth of vegetation. The overgrowth decreased from 2020 onwards when the grass clippings were removed. During the trial period, the number of plant species in the various dike sections remained constant.
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