Aug. 14 was a beautiful sunny day near Independence Pass, where Jake Gottschalk spent his day on the mountainsides off of Highway 82 counting local bees.
No, he's not a census taker. Gottschalk is a western invertebrate and rare plant biologist for Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), and his work that day included collecting data on the local bee population.
A bee survey is the process of recording data to track what types of bees live in an area, how abundant they are and how those numbers change over time. While CPW is new to working with pollinators, their partner, Bumblebee Atlas, a Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation project funded by the Bureau of Land Management and CPW, has been conducting statewide surveys for several years thanks to the help of enthusiastic volunteers across the country -- including some in the Roaring Fork Valley.
And it isn't as simple as watching bees from a distance. To properly conduct a survey, Gottschalk has to catch the bees.
"We survey the same way that kids looking for bugs survey - a net!" he told The Sopris Sun.
Gottschalk starts by travelling to pre-identified areas, like Independence Pass, and scouting for a field measuring roughly 100 square meters, and preferably peppered with wildflowers.
Once he's got his spot, Gottschalk grabs his supplies and begins his search. With a net in hand, he sweeps the field and comes across all sorts of little critters. When he finally spots a bumblebee, he approaches carefully and, in one quick motion, he swings the net and makes the catch.
"For those out there that haven't caught a bug in a net in a while, you have to swing and then flick the end of the net over the top to trap the bug," he explained.
Once captured, the bee is gently placed in a small jar and set on ice to slow its movement. When it slows enough, Gottschalk takes it out and photographs it. He takes note of its species, role in the hive and what plant it was caught on. When he has all the information he needs, Gottschalk sets the bee back on a flower to warm up until it buzzes away.
"With surveys, we can understand what species are around, what their needs are and can manage for the benefit of our pollinators," said Gottschalk.
What brings him to places like Independence Pass is the scientific community's curiosity about how pollinators are doing, specifically on public lands. State and federal agencies need baseline data on local pollinators and insight into what they might be lacking. Surveys provide a reliable way to gather that information.
So what is the data saying about Colorado's bees?
"The state of the bees is not amazing," Gottschalk admitted. "There's evidence of declines across the state for many of our native bee species, mostly due to land development and the use of pesticides. Land development destroys habitat for nesting and floral resources, and pesticides, oftentimes, injure or extirpate bees."
Pollinators in urban areas have problems finding their usual floral sources. If bumblebee colonies had more access to flowers, they'll likely grow in population and ultimately have a higher chance of survival. He offers simple advice for anyone wanting to help pollinators.
"The biggest thing that folks can do to help pollinators is plant flowers in their yards."
Gottschalk recommends planting native Colorado flowers whenever possible and choosing species with different blooming times, so the spring, summer and fall have nectar sources available.
"The other huge thing folks can do is leave wood piles or leaf litter out in their yards instead of bagging it up and throwing it away," he continued. "Both of those ... can help overwintering bees make it to the next season."
Asked if he'd ever been stung, Gottschalk said he has never been stung by a bumblebee while surveying, though he couldn't say the same for wasps.
"It's a small price to pay for getting more information about these important critters," he concluded.
This story was made available via the Colorado News Collaborative. Learn more at: