The Buzz: Pollinator Week!
Tue, 06/24/2008 - 22:10 — Gretchen Lebuhn
Welcome to Pollinator Week!
- Thank you I'd like to start by saying thank you for participating in the Great Sunflower Project. What a wonderful group you are. As a bee biologist, it has been so gratifying to see how many people are willing to help us take the steps to preserving our pollinators. I especially wish to thank those who have donated to the project. We are so, so, so grateful for your contributions.
- Data is arriving! Data has started to arrive and we are thrilled! We've had our first five bees seen in 0 seconds data from Florida and more than a handful of no bees in 30 minutes. It will be exciting to see how these data map across the United States and Canada. Remember to sample on warm sunny days. It turns out most bees won't fly when it is cloudy or shady. If your sunflower is blooming and you didn't get a sample in last week, be sure to do it this week.
- Pollinator Activities: There are a number of activities all over the United States that you can see at http://www.pollinator.org/pollinator_week_2008.htm The Fish and Wildlife Service has developed a series of neat podcasts that you can find at http://www.fws.gov/pollinators
- Bee research news: The latest data on Colony Collapse Disorder suggests that it is still having a major effect on honey bees. Last year, 32% of the commercially managed hives in the United States were lost (29% to Colony Collapse Disorder) and this year the Apiary Inspectors of America are reporting that 36% of the hives have been lost. Wow, that is a third of the honey bee colonies.
- Other disturbing bee news is that bumble bees appear to have crashed in some of the mid-western states. Chip Taylor (of MonarchWatch in Kansas) writes " Bumble bees appear to have crashed in a number of locations on the west coast, in some places in the east and here in Lawrence, Kansas. I'm a long time bumble bee watcher and I haven't seen a queen yet this year nor has one of my colleagues, Rudolf Jander, who has a large garden devoted to attracting pollinators. Those of you visiting prairies might look for bumble bees as they are important, and sometime the exclusive, pollinators of many prairie plants. The local bumble bee decline may be related to a series of warm winters with little snow cover. Under these conditions predation by skunks and opossums of overwintering queens, that tend to winter in abandoned mouse nests, appears to be higher than in cold winters. The local decline may be due in part to the 4-10 April freeze in the spring of 2007. The extreme conditions during this cold period and the lack of flowers for the following month may have eliminated many of bumble nests initiated in 2007. For more on the spring freeze of 2007, please see http://monarchwatch.org/blog/2008/04/11/how-does-your-garden-grow-part-2/."
- We hope you are all enjoying this summer warmth and that those of you in the midwest are staying dry. Let us know if you have any questions about collecting data.
Comments
Seeds?
Andy
I signed up in late April '08 but have not received any sunflower seeds. Did I miss the boat for this year? If so, would any bee observations from my garden and surrounding property be useful. I live in the country about 30 miles from the nearest large city (Temecula, CA).
How long will it take from seed to bloom?
I signed up late. I have a lot of volunteer sunflowers each year and as usual they are trying to take over the entire yard. If you have sent seeds to me, I will find a place to plant them. I generally have bees in my garden and will happily record and send data to you. How long might it take from planting to bloom if I receive seeds?
Lee Ann
in North Hollywood, CA
Counting bees
I also did not recieve anything. I'd be more that happy to count the bees in my garden using one of the plants I currently have in bloom.
sunflower seed sample
I just wanted you to know I never received anything.Good Luck with your Project