Today in Parliament, Abigail passed a motion marking Australian Pollinator Week, recognising the extraordinary diversity and critical role of our pollinators in sustaining biodiversity and food security, commending those who protect them and calling on the Government to invest in evidence-based conservation and community education to address growing threats such as habitat loss, climate change and pesticide use.

Abigail said:

I move:

(1) That this House notes that:

• Australian Pollinator Week is marked every year to shine a spotlight on the vital and unique pollinators of Australia, including native bees, wasps, hoverflies, moths, butterflies, beetles, bats, birds, honeybees and more;
• Australian Pollinator Week was founded in 2015 by Australian native bee specialist Dr Megan Halcroft to grow awareness of the importance of insect pollinators, and since then it has evolved each year to inspire action for pollinators and foster stronger connections across environmental advocacy groups and communities;
• this year, Australian Pollinator Week was held from 8 November to 16 November 2025 with the theme "Celebrating Diversity: Spotlighting pollinators of every shape and size";
• Australia is home to more than 2,000 species of native bees, and around 500 of these have not yet been scientifically named;
• native bees are the most effective type of bees to pollinate native flora and play a vital role in maintaining Australia's biodiversity and healthy ecosystems;
• some of Australia's lesser known pollinators include native birds like the regent honeyeater, a critically endangered bird with only around 300 left in the wild and around four breeding areas left in New South Wales, and mammals like flying foxes, honey possums, pygmy possums and some rodents;
• Australian plants have evolved in a multitude of ways to be pollinated by non‑native animals since colonisation— for example, Southern Cross University wildlife ecologists recently discovered that at a site in the north‑east New South Wales heathlands, rodents such as melomys, non-native house mice and swamp rats were doing as much pollination of Banksia ericifolia as birds and bees;
• New South Wales is home to a unique self‑pollinator: The endangered narrow‑leaved bertya, Bertya ingramiia, is a shrub endemic to the New England tablelands of New South Wales, on Anaiwan Country, and has both male and female reproductive parts on each individual plant, meaning this species can do all the pollination work themselves; and
• the greatest threats to Australia's pollinators are loss and fragmentation of key habitat, climate change and pesticide and insecticide use.

(2) That this House recognises the critical role of Australia's pollinators in sustaining biodiversity, ecosystem health and food security.

(3) That this House commends the work of the countless dedicated individuals and organisations across the country who work tirelessly to protect pollinating species and address the many growing threats to the environment.

(4) That this House calls on the Government to take action to protect Australian pollinators, including by:

• investing in evidence‑based efforts to conserve threatened and vulnerable pollinators; and
• supporting communities to learn more about the diversity and significance of pollinators as well as the threats they face.

Motion agreed to.

Read the transcript in Hansard here.

19 November 2025