Bee-o-Blitz
Photo by Cindy Pencek
Inaugural Bee-o-Blitz
Who: Community scientists and researchers studying native bees
What: A photography-based “Bee-o-Blitz” to document as many native bee species as possible by uploading observations to iNaturalist (no bees will be collected)
Where: Observations can be made anywhere participants encounter native bees in California from Lassen Volcanic to San Clemente Island! Upload all observations to www.iNaturalist.org
When: Two observation windows: May 16–24 and June 22–28. The later window is especially for bee lovers in montane regions, but feel free to post during either window!
Why: Native bees are small and fast, making them easy to overlook. As a result, researchers lack sufficient data on many species, which limits their ability to assess conservation status. This project aims to fill those data gaps through community participation.
How: Join the projects on iNaturalist [here is a how-to link on joining projects] and take photos and upload observations during the Bee-o-Blitz weeks. They’ll automatically be collected with these projects!
Photo by Craig Chaddock
Join the projects on iNaturalist: California Bee-o-Blitz & Montane Bee-o-Blitz
1) Contribute photo observations yourself, as a solitary bee. Go out and take as many pictures of bees as you can in your yard, parks, trails, etc. Visit places where you have permission to be – no trespassing! Post those photos to iNaturalist.org – make sure you have joined the project.
2) If you are a social bee, attend an event during Bee-o-Blitz week, or organize one locally. Fill out this form if you are planning a Bee-o-Blitz event so we can list it on our website and help promote the event. Track the events we are planning on the Events page of our website.
3) After the event we will be helping with identifying the bees. We are planning a bee share zoom call in July so we can see everyone’s favorite finds!