An upcoming workshop hosted by Rocky View County (RVC) will promote the conservation of local pollinators by teaching residents how to build a bumble bee box. “It is super cool when you have one of these boxes colonized,” said Megan Evans, president of the Alberta Native Bee Council. “Being able to watch the bees come and go, doing their foraging activities – it’s really special to have that opportunity to be able to watch them up close.” Evans will lead the workshop, which will take place from 9 a.m. to noon March 16 at County Hall. After a presentation covering different bee species in Alberta, how to identify bumble bees and the current conservation status of bumble bees in Alberta, Evans will teach attendees to build and maintain their own bumble bee boxes. “We have all the bits cut out and ready to go, and workshop participants will be given a kit and they’ll assemble their bumble bee box,” she said. “They can take it home and put it outside, and hope that bees come find it and live in it for the summer.” According to Evans, the boxes have a threefold benefit. First, since the boxes are similar to birdhouses, they help create habitats for wild bees by providing a place for wild bumble bees to nest. They are especially effective in more densely populated areas, she noted. “We do find that we get higher colonization rates of bumble bees in these boxes in more urban areas, where natural nesting resources are more limited,” Evans said. “If you live out in the country, while I would still absolutely recommend building a bumble bee box and putting it out in your yard, the colonization rates tend to be a little bit lower.” Second, Evans said, the boxes provide an opportunity for the Alberta Native Bee Council to collect data on local bee populations through observation. “We encourage workshop participants to follow up, and report back annually on bee box activity,” she said. If the participant is willing, Evans added, the council will collect the box in the fall and analyze its contents to find out what types of bees took up residence there throughout the warmer months. More than anything, though, Evans said, the boxes are an important way to raise awareness about the need for bee conservation – and the conservation of other insects, as well. “It creates an opportunity to discuss bees as a bit of a conversation piece,” she said. “We need more people that understand bees and are well informed about them.” As pollinators, bees are crucial to the reproduction of plants and stimulation of ecosystems, according to Evans. As bees visit different plants, they inadvertently transfer pollen, which aids the growth of natural plant life and can lead to greater agricultural yields. “There’s a lot of evidence that our bee populations are declining,” Evans said. “We know that we need to be paying a lot more attention – not just to our bumble bees, [but] to all of our bees and to insects in general, whose populations have been declining drastically over the last several decades.” The workshop can accommodate 30 participants. Registration is available online at rockyview.ca or by calling the County at 403-230-1401, and will remain open until all 30 spots are filled. For anyone interested in building a box but unable to attend the workshop, Evans said designs can be found online at albertanativebeecouncil.ca
