Dear ECOLOG Colleagues, I'm reaching out to those of you who might "bee" interested in commenting on a USDA national native bee monitoring plan, which is under development. Comments are due in ONE WEEK, July 6th. Details are as follows.
Last night I received an email from a colleague that there is exactly a 1-week window to provide comment on the Federal Register to the USDA on a National Native Bee Monitoring plan. There was an online "listening session" scheduled for today but as I signed on I saw it was "cancelled for low attendance". [[If you don't tell anyone about your "listening session", and you get low attendance, it is not for lack of interest, it is because the event was not properly advertised.]] It is more important than ever that we help each other seek and act in ways we can support conservation science. Although this is not my main area of research (I am a physiological plant ecologist), I am active in supporting prairie restoration and monitoring biodiversity where I work, on Antioch College's large campus, and I collaborate with a Dayton-based pollinator conservation group. We have a >500 ft^2 prairie habitat in our front lawn in Columbus, Ohio. Pollinator biology has many passionate enthusiasts, and is a venue where we ecologists can connect to the public on a shared aesthetic and conservation value. There are also many links to broader impacts, citizen science, and K-12 education. The link is below. Can you please share with your respective pollinator-supporting networks? Remember comments are due July 6th! Thank you very much for helping spread the word. -K From USDA Scientist Diana Cox-Foster: "I want to alert you to a solicitation by the USDAs Pollinator Health Working Group to get input from stakeholders on the need for and importance of monitoring native pollinators. Such initiatives will be important in learning about the native bees health and also help to promote efforts to protect their health and the plants which they pollinate. This native bee survey will hopefully not only involve agricultural ecosystems but also natural ecosystems throughout the nation." Provide your comments through the Federal Register, see: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/06/05/2017-11554/national-monitoring-plan-for- native-bees-stakeholder-and-public-listening-session Kim Landsbergen Ph.D., ESA Certified Senior Ecologist Associate Professor, Antioch College Visiting Research Scholar, EEOB, The Ohio State University e: kim dot landsbergen at gmail dot com
