Franklin County Master Gardener Participates in Award-Winning Bee Monitoring Program

 August 24, 2023                                                                                                                                                                              

Ceratina (small carpenter bee) at a nesting site
 in a Rudbeckia stem (Ron George)

Franklin County Master Gardener Participates in Award-Winning Bee Monitoring Program

By Sherrie McCleary, Master Gardener

The many roles of a Master Gardner include teaching, problem solving,  community outreach, and advising the public on best gardening practices. Did you know community scientist is now added to this list? What is a community scientist? The definition of community or citizen science is “work undertaken by volunteers or the general public, often done in collaboration, with or under the direction of professional, scientists, or scientific institutions.”

Pennsylvania Master Gardeners are participating in a bee monitoring program investigating and collecting data on bees at a highly trained level. Under the direction of Penn State’s College of Agricultural Science and the lab of Associate Professor of Entomology, Margarita Lopez-Uribe, bee monitoring is a multiyear effort to understand Pennsylvania’s native bee population. Since bees are the most important pollinators of plants, it makes them critical for plant reproduction and a balanced ecosystem. While studies show evidence of bee decline, there has been a lack of standardized long-term monitoring data. The participants have been recognized for their work in this important program.

 In June 2023, Penn State Master Gardeners earned first place in the research category of the David Gibby Search for Excellence Awards at the International Master Gardener Conference held in Kansas. The award was for exceptional volunteer work and dedication to the bee monitoring program. Recognized for the first-place award were 20 Penn State Master Gardeners.

Tracy Snyder collecting bees for the monitoring project

Penn State Extension is proud to announce Franklin County Master Gardener Tracy Snyder as one of the 20 volunteers recognized. An avid gardener for more than 30 years, Tracy became a Master Gardener in 2018. She has volunteered her time to other projects such as Victory Garden, Greenhouse Planting, and Program Advisory but her love and passion for insects is what interested her in the bee monitoring project. According to Tracy, “Becoming a Master Gardener was an easy choice based on my gardening experience, but I had no idea that it would give me the opportunity to participate in something like this. I am really grateful for that.”

She has received advanced training on the protocols used to collect, pin, label and identify native bees.  “I have no formal scientific training, so it is really great to be making a meaningful contribution to the scientific community,” Tracy said. “I hope that my efforts can help protect our native bees.” A follow-up workshop is held each year for additional training and interaction with fellow bee monitors.

Thanks to Tracy’s efforts and involvement, Franklin County Extension is now part of this important initiative. Penn State will use the data collected to gain a better understanding of the nature of Pennsylvania bees, including distributions, host plants, and timing of developmental cycles. As a Franklin County Master Gardener, Tracy will be able to use her knowledge and experiences to educate people in the community on the diversity of bees in Pennsylvania. “A lot of people are unaware of the huge diversity of bees that could be right outside their door,“ said Tracy. “The 2020 checklist of bees in PA showed 437 species.” She also noted, “Native bees provide vital pollination services and are often better pollinators than honeybees. They evolved with our native plants, so they are uniquely qualified to pollinate them.”

Pinned bees and labels are ready to be examined for identification (Penn State Extension)

To date, Tracy has collected 493 specimens, 58 varied species and 37 county records. County records indicate that the species had not been recorded for the county previously, even though they may have existed. These species were not officially recognized because many areas of the state have been poorly sampled or not sampled at all. Tracy notes that, as time goes on, it will be harder to get county records because the easy species will already have been recorded.

The Penn State bee monitoring program continues to make strides with totals of 4,761 specimens, 185 species, and 488 county records collected so far for 2022. The Master Gardeners involved have been applauded for their dedication to learning the skills required and devotion to research. Plus, they are winning first place awards! Congratulations to Franklin County’s Tracy Snyder and the other 19 state-wide Master Gardeners for being recognized and honored for your outstanding research.

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