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Native Bee Watch Newsletter #4
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Welcome to the Native Bee Watch Newsletter! This biweekly newsletter will provide the current buzz on bee monitoring, tips for best practice observing, the Bee and Plant of the Week, and other fun, educational resources. Enjoy!
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Citizen Scientist Session
Wednesday, July 19th
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We are looking forward to observing bees again this Tuesday from 9am-11am.
Gardens at Spring Creek
- Lauri Robins
- Shelly Lynch
- Barb Maynard
Nix Farm Natural Area
- Lori Nixon
- Carol Seemueller
- Colleen Fullbright
CSU Trial Gardens
Extra Open Slots for Bee Monitoring! Can you Help?
Thursday, August 4th
- 1 opening at Nix Farm
- 1 opening at the Gardens at Spring Creek
Wednesday, August 17th
- 3 openings at the Gardens at Spring Creek
- 2 openings at the CSU Trial Gardens
- 1 opening at Nix Farm Natural Area
Email lisa.mason@colostate.edu if you can attend!
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Reminders
- Send your photos to Lisa.Mason@colostate.edu!
- If you have participated in at least 2 group bee monitoring sessions, you are welcome to monitor on your own! Ask Lisa if you have questions about getting started!
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Volunteer Spotlight
Meet Citizen Scientist Rosemary --
The Bee Enthusiast
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A Little About Rosemary
I have degrees in biology and biotechnology. Years ago I worked in various toxicology labs, including insect toxicology where I learned to rear crop insects and houseflies for testing. Raising houseflies is not as easy as you might think! More recently, I became involved in statistical software and worked in technical support and software testing. Now, I am a database specialist at the CSU Veterinary School.
Why Do You Enjoy Volunteering?
For me, volunteering is a way to meet new people, learn new skills, and do something that benefits our communities. I especially love volunteer experiences that involve nature and being outdoors, be it one of the wonderful citizen science projects here in Fort Collins or picking up trash along the Poudre River. It's a way of making a contribution and having fun doing it.
What is Your Favorite Bee?
I have always been fascinated with carpenter bees. It is amazing how such small creatures can make those perfectly round holes in wood! Seems like a lot of hard work to me.
What is the Coolest Thing You Have Seen This Summer?
Well, that is a tough question. The interaction of the two insect species, the assassin bug and the bee, at the Gardens on Spring Creek during a recent bee count event, was really very cool, although fatal for the bee (see photo below).
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Cool Sightings at the Gardens!
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Besides the awesome bees, what else have you observed this summer?
Life is so busy and hectic! It is incredible what happens when you slow down and take in the scenery around you. I have thoroughly enjoyed not only bee observations, but other interesting critters and sites in the gardens.
We have quite a diverse range of awesome bees this summer! Even though we are only recording bees, we have seen some other awesome things that we may not have noticed had we not stopped to observe and notice our surroundings. Each monitoring session brings something new! A new bee, a new insect, a habitat observation, new wildlife, new species interactions...
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A honey bee and a milkweed longhorn beetle spotted at the Gardens at Spring Creek on July 7th.
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A predatory assassin bug feeding on a honey bee at the Gardens at Spring Creek.
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A hummingbird spotted at the CSU Trial Gardens on July 13th.
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A grasshopper camouflaged among the paprika yarrow at the Gardens at Spring Creek on July 7th.
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A checkered white butterfly at the Gardens at Spring Creek on July 7th.
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A sand wasp (
Bembix
genus) at the Gardens at Spring Creek. These wasps have been spotted numerous times the past couple of weeks. These solitary wasps make their nests in sandy soils. They are predators of flies, but adults will also feed on nectar.
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Answer: Guess Who Lives in Here?
In the last newsletter, I asked who lives in this cavity nest (left photo) and who is responsible for the the sections of missing leaf of the eastern redbud tree at the Gardens at Spring Creek (right photo).
Volunteer, Lori Nixon answered correctly right away: A leaf cutter bee, in the family Megachilidae. This family of bees falls in the Hairy Belly Bee group. Keep your eyes out! Both of these pictures were taken on along the monitoring path at the gardens!
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Quiz Question: What is this insect?
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I took this photo at the Gardens at Spring Creek. This insect loved the cone flowers! Take a close look....
Email your answer to lisa.mason@colostate.edu! The answer will be in the next newsletter.
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Bee of the Week: Bumble bees
Family: Apidae
Genus: Bombus
There are over 2 dozen species of bumble bees native to Colorado, four of which have orange markings on their abdomen. Like the honey bee, they are a social creature and live together in colonies, unlike honey bees, however, only the queen bumble bees will overwinter, giving rise to a new colony each year.
Bumble bees are very important pollinators for a couple of reasons. First, they do quite well in extremely cold climates, acting as primary pollinators of Colorado’s subalpine region. As well, they perform “buzz pollination” also known as sonication. This occurs when a bee rapidly contracts their flight muscles, powerfully forcing the pollen out of the flower’s anther. About 8% of flowers are porcidal, hidden inside a tube-like anther, and require sonication for cross pollination. Some examples of these flowers include tomatoes, peppers, cactus, blueberry and kiwi. Chances are that if you have been to a greenhouse that is growing tomatoes or peppers, you have seen a commercial colony of bumble bees pollinating the crop.
Plant of the Week: Grand Mesa Beardtongue
The Grand Mesa beardtongue from Plant Select® is a hardy Colorado penstemon variety that prefers full-to-partial sun, flowers from April to June, and is likely to attract a variety of pollinators to its beautiful blue blooms. A drought tolerant xeric plant that has been bred for Colorado’s unique climate, the Grand Mesa beardtongue is a delightful addition to any local garden.
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Below:
A hairy belly bee at the Gardens at Spring Creek on July 14th. Photo: Lisa Mason
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Native Bee Watch: A Citizen Science Project Exploring Bee Biodiversity in Northern Colorado
Website: nativebeewatch.wordpress.com Contact: Lisa Mason at Lisa.Mason@ColoState.edu
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