About the event

Locked down during the coronavirus pandemic, My Garden of a Thousand Bees follows acclaimed wildlife filmmaker Martin Dohrn as he sets out to record all the bee species in his tiny urban garden in Bristol, England.

Filming with one-of-a-kind lenses he forged at his kitchen table, he catalogues more than 60 different species, from Britain’s largest bumblebees to scissor bees the size of a mosquito.

Over long months, Dohrn observes how differences in behaviour set different species apart. He eventually gets so close to the bees he can identify individuals by sight, documenting life at their level as we have never seen it before.

Viewers will marvel at moments timely captured in My Garden of a Thousand Bees, such as bees laying tiny eggs preparing for the next generation, green-fanged spiders feasting on male flower bees and a female yellow-faced bee attacking a Gasteruption wasp to protect her nest.

Other fascinating behaviour featured in the program includes two male bees fighting each other over a female, different species of bees competing over territory and one busy bee building a nest with a shell and hundreds of sticks. Intrigued by the intelligence of one particular wood-carving leafcutter bee, Dohrn dubs her “Nicky” and sees life at her level as she leaves a lasting legacy in the garden.

Screening courtesy of Meadow In My Garden and supported by the Quay Arts Centre and the Trust as a free event.

Paul Jupp of Meadow in my Garden is introducing this film and will be leading a Q&A afterwards on it and bee friendly gardening.