‘Insect hotels’ double up as benches
A start-up company in Strasbourg has designed a public bench which doubles as a ‘hotel’ for insects.
Julien Hoffmann, founder of DEFI-Écologique, wants to help the environment by attracting insects back into towns. “Generally, people don’t find insects attractive but they are vital to bringing nature into urban areas,” he said. “We know bird populations, particularly sparrows, are decreasing so if we make sure there are enough insects for them to eat they will surely come back.
“Now that chemical pesticides and herbicides are illegal in communes, we are looking forward to seeing more vegetation in towns which will provide food for them, but they cannot easily live in pavements so the installation of insect homes is vital. We are aware there isn’t much public money around so we wanted to create something which had a double purpose.”
Mr Hoffman has done extensive research so that the benches are attractive to both insects and humans: “I have studied the size and shape of holes that different insects use to the nearest millimetre so that only non-stinging species will want to stay in the benches, which have a seat with a big overlap so people aren’t afraid of insects climbing out of their nest and up their legs.
“We have a list of about 15 insects we want to stay in our benches, including ladybirds, golden ground beetles and lacewings.”
He says the Mairie at Strasbourg has shown interest in having a prototype in the town but they need around €30-40,000 to get more benches on pavements.
