Assessing Bumble Bee Species Richness Across Wisconsin State Natural Areas

My capstone project involved developing and implementing a standardized framework to monitor bumble bee species richness across State Natural Areas managed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ Natural Heritage Conservation (NHC) Bureau in the Upper Lake Michigan District. Because bumble bees are essential pollinators and several species in Wisconsin are experiencing significant declines, the primary objective of my project was to contribute to long-term conservation efforts by collecting high-quality baseline data and creating a survey approach that can be easily replicated in future years.

From June through August 2025, I conducted both opportunistic and formal timed surveys across actively managed sites, using insect nets and vial-based capture methods to safely photograph and document each bee for later identification. All observations were submitted to the Wisconsin Bumble Bee Brigade to ensure accuracy through expert verification. These surveys resulted in species records from eight distinct locations, including multiple Species of Greatest Conservation Need and one federally endangered species. I also collected information on site-level floral resources to help interpret patterns in species richness and identify areas where limited bloom availability may affect pollinator diversity.

In addition to fieldwork, I developed R code to assist with data organization, analysis, and visualization, providing the DNR with a tool that can be used for future monitoring as more data are collected. The final product of the project is a comprehensive report, submitted to the Wisconsin DNR, that outlines survey methods, summarizes site histories, presents preliminary findings, and compares results with publicly available county-level data to place the surveys in a broader ecological context.

Overall, the project met its objective by establishing a consistent monitoring framework, generating a foundational dataset for the region, and strengthening the organization’s capacity to track bumble bee populations and evaluate the effectiveness of ongoing habitat management.