Buzzing to volunteer? Kansas looks for help with Great Plains Bumble Bee Atlas

A bumble bee clings to an alfalfa leaf. (Photo by Krista Lundgren/USFWS)

TOPEKA — Kansas needs help documenting bumble bees to develop a catalogue of their habitats, foraging and population across three states, serving as a resource for conservation.

The Great Plains Bumble Bee Atlas is a community science project, and this year’s mission relies on volunteers to survey prairie land, largely in western Kansas, where sampling isn’t as developed as other parts of the state.

Since 2022, Kansas volunteers have identified six bumble bee species, two of which are at risk of extinction, recorded 2,300 bumble bees and conducted 263 surveys, according to a Friday news release from the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. This year’s effort divides Kansas into a grid, and officials are asking volunteers to prioritize areas that have been surveyed fewer than three times in the past three summers, according to the atlas website.

“This will improve our baseline understanding of which species are present in each state and which habitats and plants they utilize throughout the region,” the site said.

The department and the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation are scheduled to host online and in-person training sessions this month.

“All you need to become a volunteer is an interest in pollinators and the ability to spare a couple of weekends between June and September,” said Katie Lamke, a conservation biologist for the Xerces Society, a wildlife conservation nonprofit. “We especially need volunteers who want to explore sparsely populated areas like the western prairies, where we have less information about bumble bees.”

The free, in-person trainings are scheduled for June 6 at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Strong City and June 7 at the Sandsage Bison Range Wildlife Area in Garden City. Registration is required in advance at BumbleBeeAtlas.org/pages/events.

The Great Plains Bumble Bee Atlas spans Kansas, North Dakota and South Dakota, while the national Bumble Bee Atlas stretches across 21 states.

“We are excited that the Great Plains Bumble Bee Atlas is continuing in Kansas for the next two years,” said Diedre Kramer, wildlife diversity coordinator for the wildlife department.

Kramer said volunteering for the atlas is an opportunity to enjoy Kansas’ wild spaces and help inform conservation efforts.