TORONTO, May 22, 2024 – Community science volunteers – laypeople with an interest in bees and conservation – significantly contribute to the scientific knowledge of native bumble bees across Canada and the United States, finds a new study by 91ŃÇÉ«.

It’s buzz worthy confirmation that community science programs can play an important role in monitoring the changing distributions of bumble bees and more. Community scientists have importantly also detected several at-risk or endangered species in unexpected locations, including the rusty-patched bumble bee and the gypsy cuckoo bumble bee. Trained scientists often haven’t seen some of the bees in years and these sightings can help them keep tabs on the species.

The paper, , was published today in the journal PLOS ONE.

Up to a third of North American bumble bees are in decline, but the why of it is still fuzzy. Knowledge gaps about bumble bee stressors, ranges, population dynamics and preferred plants are prevalent.

“As scientists we really value the contribution of community scientists and the breadth of data they are able to gather, including a wide range of locations and species. As scientists usually lack the resources and time to do this kind of field work over such a large geographic area, it really shines a spotlight on the importance of community science programs,” says lead and corresponding author Victoria MacPhail, who conducted the research as part of her PhD at 91ŃÇɫ’s Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change (EUC).

Through the growing (BBW) program, community scientists have been the eyes on the ground for bee researchers. The volunteers have taken photos of bumble bees from every province, state and territory and upload them through the BBW website along with where they were spotted and plant information if known. Bee taxon experts verify the species of bee.

“The data collected by volunteers through Bumble Bee Watch was surprisingly more plentiful, robust and valuable than anticipated and we rely on that data to add to our current knowledge and to confirm other information,” says MacPhail, who is also a former Bee Ecology, Evolution and Conservation coordinator at 91ŃÇÉ«.

MacPhail completed the study along with 91ŃÇÉ« Associate Professor of EUC and Senior Endangered Species Conservation Biologist of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation in the United States. They compared BBW data collected by community scientists with the Bumble Bees of North America (BBNA), data collected through traditional scientific methods, for all years available and specifically from 2010 to 2020.

The researchers found the BBW covered as much ground geographically, as the BBNA over all years – 63 provinces, states and territories – and had information on 41 species compared to 48 in the BBNA.

“We found the BBW to be valuable as it bolsters our knowledge about habitat, species associations, distribution, and changes in population size, which helps to inform conservation management for bumble bees.”

Sheila Colla

Looking exclusively at the decade from 2010 to 2020, the BBW had data from an additional four provinces and states, and more information about 13 species than in the BBNA.

In terms of percentages, the BBW contributed 8.5 per cent of overall records, but that increased to more than 25 per cent during the specific decade being studied. Community scientists were able to confirm the prevalence of species as well as inform researchers of which species were inhabiting new locations.

They also contributed ecological information, such as species data for most of the bee species and unique plant genera. Knowing which flowers different types of bumble bees prefer is nothing to sneeze at as it can help prevent habitat loss and inform conservation management.

“While the BBW had fewer bee records than the BBNA database overall, it definitely helps to fill in data gaps and provide new information, and it complements traditional scientific methods,” says Colla. “We found the BBW to be valuable as it bolsters our knowledge about habitat, species associations, distribution, and changes in population size, which helps to inform conservation management for bumble bees.”

In addition, community science programs can bring awareness to the threats facing bumble bees and help mitigate species decline as they are already interested, engaged and documenting bees, their habitats and their locations – buzz pollinating action and ideas.

The post Community science volunteers can set scientific world abuzz with new bumble bee sightings appeared first on News@91ŃÇÉ«.

TORONTO, Dec. 1, 2022 â€“ How do you empower today’s youth to change the dial on climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental degradation? You invite more than 800 students from some 30 Ontario high schools to 91ŃÇɫ’s  conference.

After a two-year hiatus, the conference hosted by the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change (EUC) is back with more than 30 in-person, hands-on workshops at 91ŃÇɫ’s Keele Campus on everything from designing effective climate solutions, climate justice and storytelling, sustainability and the green economy.

“Ontario youth are the next generation of environmentally active citizens,” says EUC Dean Alice Hovorka. “We welcome high school students and their teachers to this dynamic one-day conference that brings together youth and community organizations from across Ontario to discuss, collaborate and learn how to make sustainable and equitable change in our world.”

Three keynote speakers and EUC alumni, Jamilla Mohamud, Jason Robinson and Aliya Din will also bring their experience working as an urban planner, an environmental and social advocate, and a City of Toronto parks program officer, respectively, to the one-day event.

Students can choose which workshops they wish to attend, including:

• Nurturing Hope and Belonging in a World of Social Chaos through Landscape Experiences by 

• Migration, Status and Allyship by 

• Nature in the City: Understanding Toronto’s Urban Forest by 

• Gone Fishin’ by 

• Becoming a Food Citizen: Food, the Environment, and You by 

• Rooted and Rising: Re-Imagining Climate Leadership by  

• Addressing the intersection of biodiversity loss, climate change and environmental inequity through youth-led action projects by 

• Can You Hear the Eco? by  and

• Climate Justice: One Size Does Not Fit All by 

In addition, there will be a workshop for teachers – Action Projects to Change the World – to help them facilitate change.

WHAT: The Change Your World conference at 91ŃÇÉ« University

WHEN: Wednesday, Dec. 7

• 9:45 a.m. – Opening ceremonies

• 11 a.m. to noon – Workshops

• 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. – Workshops

WHERE: Vari Hall Rotunda and various classrooms in Vari Hall, Keele Campus, 91ŃÇÉ«

SEE MAP: 

NEAREST PARKING:  

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91ŃÇÉ« is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change and prepare our students for success. 91ŃÇÉ«'s fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91ŃÇɫ’s campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contact: Sandra McLean, 91ŃÇÉ« Media Relations, 416-272-6317, sandramc@yorku.ca

The post Teaching youth how to change their world appeared first on News@91ŃÇÉ«.

TORONTO, May 18, 2022 – It’s no secret that pollinators are in trouble – and it could affect that morning coffee, fruit and even, bowl of cereal.  

The theme of on May 20 is Bee Engaged: Celebrating the diversity of bees and beekeeping systems, and it’s a good time to learn how creating bee-friendly habitats in the garden, on a balcony or in a community garden can help. There are some 350 species of native bees in Ontario, more than 850 in Canada and 20,000 worldwide.

91ŃÇÉ« is home to the recently established Centre for Bee Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation where bee scientists and modellers work to foster collaborative expertise and further innovative and cutting-edge research to better understand bees and the risks to their health. Want to know more about bee habitats, behaviour, genetics and diseases, just ask the experts listed below.

And, tune in to 91ŃÇɫ’s Scholar’s Hub @ Home: Bee the Change on May 19 at noon to learn about saving declining pollinators from two of 91ŃÇɫ’s bee experts, Associate Professor of the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change and Professor of the Faculty of Science. Register .

Sheila Colla, co-author of the forthcoming book (June 11) – , can discuss the following:

• What to plant on balconies, in yards and community gardens across Ontario (See )

• Connection between native plants and native pollinators

• Importance of citizen science – how people can help scientists keep track of bees and their habitats

• What happened to the Rusty-patched bumblebee and why it’s a tale of what could happen to other bees

• Other bees on the endangered list

• Beyond honey bees and bumble bees. What are sweat bees, carpenter bees and mining bees, and what role do they play?

, an expert in wild bee genomics, behaviour and conservation and an associate professor in the Faculty of Science, can talk about:

• Loss of plant-pollinator networks and how some plants will now bloom too soon or too late for bees that rely on them

• Are the gut microbiomes of city bees missing key beneficial bacteria?

• Biodiversity conservation and why it’s important

• How maternal care of bee offspring has expanded the social life of bees

• Population and behavioural genomics

• Climate change, land use change and the effects on bees

Amro Zayed, an expert in honey bee biology and genomics, can talk aboutthe following:

• How bee genes can determine how bees behave, including how good they are at keeping their hive clean and how well they can survive cold winters

• Did western honey bees originate in Asia and why is that important to know?

• How the urban environment can help or hinder bees â€“ think concrete versus green spaces, trees and gardens

• What’s stressing bumblebees? How scientists are using a conservation genomic approach and next generation sequencing to look inside for pathogens and pesticides

• Why are African hybrid honey bees (known as killer honey bees) highly defensive and aggressive?

• Bee health diagnostic tools, what they do and what’s being developed

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91ŃÇÉ« is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change and prepare our students for success. 91ŃÇÉ«'s fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91ŃÇɫ’s campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contact:
Sandra McLean, 91ŃÇÉ« Media Relations, 416-272-6317, sandramc@yorku.ca

The post On World Bee Day, everyone can help save the bees appeared first on News@91ŃÇÉ«.

TORONTO, October 28, 2020 – How well do you know your bees? 91ŃÇÉ« researchers have found bee knowledge in Canada lacking with about half of those surveyed thinking honey bees are wild and native to Canada.

They’re not. They were brought over from Europe and are managed by beekeepers like other farm animals, such as dairy cattle for example, but researchers did find it is the bee species best known to the Canadians.

The researchers analyzed material from an Oraclepoll of 2,000 people across the country on general bee facts and conservation conducted by Friends of the Earth. Some participants thought queen bees and drone bees were a species of bee. They are castes within a species, rather than a species.

“The reason for analyzing the survey results in detail is we really wanted to understand the Canadian public’s overall general knowledge of bees, their perceptions of bees and the threats they face,” says lead researcher Nyssa van Vierssen Trip, a grad student in the .

The findings could have a trickle-down effect on conservation.

“It’s important because to increase legal protections for bees, we need to understand how the public sees them. If there is support for bee conservation among the public, then it would be easier for politicians to take action,” says Assistant Professor , whose lab the research was done in.

About 30 per cent of participants, were able to correctly name the bumble bee as a wild native bee species, but only one respondent named a solitary been, in this case a mason bee. Solitary bees, however, make up the majority of wild native bee species in this country. There are 900 native bee species in Canada. Forty-six species are bumble bees of which one-quarter are at risk of extinction across North America.

“Friends of the Earth Canada initially conducted the poll to understand the level of support from Canadians for protecting wild, native bees and their understanding of these species,” says its CEO, Beatrice Olivastri. “The analysis of the poll results by researchers from 91ŃÇÉ« adds weight to the interpretation of these findings and increases their utility for scientists and government officials. We believe Canadians will support new measures to protect wild, native bees beyond protection for those already at risk.”

Can honey bees replace wild bees as crop pollinators? Two-thirds of respondents didn’t know the answer. About a quarter thought all bees can sting, whereas out of the about 860 native bee species in Canada many do not sting.

“There is a real need to work with the public and educate them about Canada native wild bee species,” says Colla. “Almost one quarter of those surveyed didn’t know how they could help bee conservation, while close to 20 per cent didn’t think it was a personal priority.”

When it comes to political stripes, researchers found that which federal party participants voted for predicted their concern for bee health and conservation. Respondents who voted for the federal Green Party or the New Democratic Party were more likely to believe climate change, disease, modern intensive agriculture, and habitat loss were threats to bees than Conservative Party voters. Green Party voters were also 3.78 times more likely to express high levels of concern for bee health.

Overall, though, there was a general level of concern for bee health despite political affiliation with pesticides topping the list of the most likely threat with 89 per cent of participants choosing that, followed by 70 per cent thinking loss of floral resources was the biggest threat. Only 66 per cent said climate change.

There were also regional differences. While most Canadians want the provincial and federal governments to take the lead in bee conservation, people in Manitoba and Saskatchewan were more likely to see bee conservation as the responsibility of homeowners and landowners.

But as van Vierssen Trip says, “What we found, is that despite people’s general knowledge about native wild bees being low, they like bees, they’re interested in bee conservation and there is heavy engagement in this issue.”

The was published this month in the journal Conservation Science and Practice.

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91ŃÇÉ« champions new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-disciplinary programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. 91ŃÇÉ« students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. 91ŃÇÉ« U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 25 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, 91ŃÇÉ« is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni. 91ŃÇÉ« U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.

Media Contact:

Sandra McLean, 91ŃÇÉ« Media Relations, 416-272-6317, sandramc@yorku.ca

The post Do you know your bees? Researchers find Canadians lack bee knowledge appeared first on News@91ŃÇÉ«.

TORONTO, October 14, 2020 – How does animal dung protect against Asian Hornets? Do aging honey bee queens create mutated drones? These are just two of the questions presenters at this year’s virtual, one day bee conference (BeeCon) at 91ŃÇÉ« will discuss.

Yellow-banded bumble bee on dandelion. Photo by Victoria MacPhail, 91ŃÇÉ«

BeeCon is an annual free symposium for local, national and international bee biologists to present and discuss their work on a wide range of bee-related topics, including behaviour, genomics, ecology, and conservation. It’s hosted by the , 91ŃÇɫ’s newest organized research unit, which connects experts from biology and conservation to math modelling across the University.

This year’s virtual event will take place Friday, Oct. 16, from 9:15am to 5pm.

The event will feature talks from Ontario researchers ranging from the conservation genomics of bumble bees to beneficial microbes and modelling pollinator foraging.

Symposium talks will include the following:

9:30 am – Biology of Some Weird Beetles Parasitic on Bees in Ontario with Nora Romero of 91ŃÇÉ«

11 am – Keynote speech: Leveraging Symbionts to Protect Wild and Managed Pollinators with Quinn McFrederick of the University of California

1:45pm – Insights into the phylogeny and biogeography of the cleptoparasitic bee genus Nomada with Katherine Odanaka of 91ŃÇÉ«

2:15 pm – The Effect of Aging Honeybee Queens on the Mutation Rate of Drones with Dova Brenman-Suttner of 91ŃÇÉ«

3:15 pm – Tool use by Honey Bees: Apis cerana Bees Defend their Colonies from Attacks by Giant Asian Hornets with Animal Dung with Gard W. Otis of the University of Guelph

4:15pm - Community Science Adds to Our Knowledge About Bumble Bee (Apidae: Bombus) Distribution, Status, & Natural History Information: A Comparison of the Bumble Bee Watch Program to a Database of North American Researcher-Collected Records with Victoria MacPhail of 91ŃÇÉ«

Click here for the .

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91ŃÇÉ« champions new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-disciplinary programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. 91ŃÇÉ« students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. 91ŃÇÉ« U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 25 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, 91ŃÇÉ« is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni. 91ŃÇÉ« U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.

Media Contact:

Sandra McLean, 91ŃÇÉ« Media Relations, 416-272-6317, sandramc@yorku.ca

The post Virtual bee conference a buzz with quirky facts appeared first on News@91ŃÇÉ«.

Bee photos by community scientists contribute to much needed data for conservation efforts

TORONTO, June 29, 2020 – Think you can identify that bumble bee you just took a photo of in your backyard? 91ŃÇÉ« researchers have found that a little more than 50 per cent of community science participants, who submitted photos to the North American program, were able to properly identify the bee species.

Community science is a popular tool used by conservation biologists to engage the public in scientific data collection to inform conservation policy and management decisions.

Bombus terricola. Photo credit: PhD candidate Victoria MacPhail, Faculty of Environmental Studies, 91ŃÇÉ«

In the case of Bumble Bee Watch, the collected data is from all over North America and can feed into conservation plans to better protect the bees and their habitats, and even to know what habitats they need, knowledge on how different species are doing, and even legal protections for endangered bee species. Tens of thousands of bees have been recorded, including those at-risk.

“That data is incredibly important. It’s data that would otherwise may not be captured,” says PhD student Victoria MacPhail of the Faculty of Environmental Studies (FES) and lead author of the published today in the journal .

But if the bee identifications made by the public are inaccurate close to 50 per cent of the time, that puts a lot of strain on the enlisted experts to verify or correct the identifications.

“Accurate species level identification is an important first step for effective conservation management decisions,” says MacPhail. “Those community science programs that have experts review submitted photos to determine if the identification is correct have a higher scientific value.”

Bombus rufocinctus. Photo credit: PhD candidate Victoria MacPhail, Faculty of Environmental Studies, 91ŃÇÉ«

There are 46 species of bumble bees in North America. Community scientists collected or identified about 39 species, although not always correctly. Some of the species the participants were most likely to get wrong were the Rusty-Patched Bumble Bee and the American Bumble Bee. Both are declining and listed as critical or of special concern. MacPhail thinks much of that has to do with wishful thinking.

“Everyone wants to find an endangered bumble bee in their backyard,” she says. “But the accuracy of initial identification is important for determining the utility and quality of community science-collected data.”

The researchers, including Assistant Professor of FES and PhD student Shelby Gibson of the Faculty of Science, analyzed more than 22,000 expert-reviewed submissions to Bumble Bee Watch. Some 52 per cent were correctly identified by species, 38 per cent were incorrectly identified, while another nine per cent were invalid (not a bumble bee).

Some species are easier to identify than others, which is why the researchers are looking into the possibility of using artificial intelligence to verify submissions of those easier-to-identify bees. They will also look at providing more tools and resources to help participants properly identify the bee in their photos, including pop-up windows to offer tips on what to look for to identify that particular species before the final submission is made.

Better accuracy of identification means the data can be put to use faster and it will save valuable expert time, allowing them to give more timely feedback, engage participants, enhance educational value and aid in retention of the valuable resource of community scientists.

PHOTOS:

Volunteers taking photos of bees – Credit: PhD candidate Victoria MacPhail, Faculty of Environmental Studies, 91ŃÇÉ«

Credit: PhD candidate Victoria MacPhail, Faculty of Environmental Studies, 91ŃÇÉ«

Bees on flowers –

Bombus rufocinctus. Credit: PhD candidate Victoria MacPhail, Faculty of Environmental Studies, 91ŃÇÉ«

Bombus bohemicus. Credit: Assistant Professor Sheila Colla, Faculty of Environmental Studies, 91ŃÇÉ«

Bombus terricola. Credit: PhD candidate Victoria MacPhail, Faculty of Environmental Studies, 91ŃÇÉ«

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91ŃÇÉ« champions new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-disciplinary programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. 91ŃÇÉ« students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. 91ŃÇÉ« U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 25 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, 91ŃÇÉ« is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni. 91ŃÇÉ« U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.

Media Contact:

Sandra McLean, 91ŃÇÉ« Media Relations, 416-272-6317, sandramc@yorku.ca

The post Community scientists identify bumble bees correctly 50 per cent of the time appeared first on News@91ŃÇÉ«.