Collective Impact of Community Scientists
The Missouri Bumble Bee Atlas had a great second season in 2021—Thank you to the many participants!
Including both 2020 and 2021:
Including both 2020 and 2021:
- Num. of Participants: 164
- Num. of Grids Surveyed: 68/78 or 87%
- Num. of Habitat Surveys Conducted: 289
- Num. of Bumble Bee Observations: 2,389
- Num. of Unique Bee Species Detected: 8
Effort by Grid Cell
The two maps below display the number of surveys per grid cell (left) and the number of bee observations per grid cell (right). The pattern tends to follow human populations; areas with more people tend to have more surveys, which tend to lead to more bumble bee observations. A goal of the Atlas is to reach more rural areas of the state to understand the bumble bee dynamics outside of major cities. In the coming season, after you've conducted two surveys in your own grid, consider visiting one of the grid cells with less than two surveys and help fill in a knowledge gap!
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Bumble Bee Observations
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This season alone 1,742 observations were shared to Bumble Bee Watch; 1,398 of those were part of a formal Atlas survey and the remaining 344 were incidental observations. Including the 2020 season, 2,389 bumble bees have been observed during the Atlas.
Eight species were observed between 2020-21 (listed in order from most-to-least observed in the pie chart). Of the 2,389 bee observations, we were able to verify 98% (2,339) of those, which means you all did a fantastic job taking clear photographs. |
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Noteworthy Finds
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Half-black Bumble Bee
Bombus vagans The Half-black bumble bee is an uncommon bee in Missouri and not typically found in large numbers. Atlas participants observed this species 7 times in 2021, five of those observations were new county records (i.e. the first observation of this species in a particular county)! New county records (map): Benton (G. Miller), Clinton (K. Lafolette), Cole (B. White), Greene (T. Franklin), and Harrison (K. Lamke). Keep an eye out for this species in 2022! View photographs on Bumble Bee Watch to learn what it looks like. |
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Southern Plains Bumble Bee
Bombus fraternus The Southern Plains bumble bee is a large, distinctive bee scattered throughout Missouri. This species is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened and Endangered Species, meaning it is at-risk of facing extinction. Encouragingly, this species was observed 45 times by 18 different participants between 2020-2021, which lead to 10 new county records. New county records (map): Adair, Benton, Boone, Cass, Chariton, Dekalb, Henry, Jackson, Johnson, and Platte counties. Keep an eye out for this species in 2022! View photographs on Bumble Bee Watch to learn what it looks like. |
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Yellow Bumble Bee
Bombus fervidus The Yellow Bumble Bee is very uncommon in Missouri. During the Atlas, there has only been one verified observation from Buchanan county and two additional observations that are tentatively of the Yellow bumble bee (see map). All observations were male bees, which display a lot of overlap with male American bumble bees in terms of color pattern. For that reason, and the fact that Missouri is outside of the Yellow bumble bee's historic range, we are taking a cautious approach before we verify observations of this species. Keep an eye out for this species in 2022! View photographs on Bumble Bee Watch to learn what it looks like. |
Bumble Bee Watch / Dave Prescott
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Flowering Plant Observations
Understanding which plants bumble bees utilize throughout the season and across the state is a valuable source for conservation practitioners wishing to support these imperiled pollinators. Between 2020-2021, nearly 97% (2,316) of all Atlas observations were submitted with a floral host! Bumble bees were observed on 136 different plant genera, though 55% of visits were to ten genera.
On the charts below, we've listed all plant genera that had been visited by at least 4 different species of bumble bees. The blue bar represents the number of bumble bee visits to each genus, while the orange dot represent the number of bumble bee species that visited each genus.
On the charts below, we've listed all plant genera that had been visited by at least 4 different species of bumble bees. The blue bar represents the number of bumble bee visits to each genus, while the orange dot represent the number of bumble bee species that visited each genus.
Photography Highlights
Taking high quality photographs of chilled bumble bees is no easy task, but Atlas participants did a fantastic job! Below we've selected a few photos taken in 2021 that display clear detail for identifying. Notice how each photo has a high-contrast (light or dark) background and the bee is positioned in a way that provides clear views of the head, thorax, and abdomen.
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Two-spotted Bumble Bee (Male)
Bombus bimaculatus Bumble Bee Watch / D. Getman 
Southern Plains Bumble Bee (Female)
Bombus fraternus Bumble Bee Watch / B. Widmar 
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American Bumble Bee (Male)
Bombus pensylvanicus Bumble Bee Watch / L. Williams 
Common Eastern Bumble Bee (Male)
Bombus impatiens Bumble Bee Watch / K. Suedmeyer 
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Brown-belted Bumble Bee (Female)
Bombus griseocollis Bumble Bee Watch / D. Bernskoeter 
Two-spotted Bumble Bee (Female)
Bombus bimaculatus Bumble Bee Watch / M. Crowell 
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