National Park Service pollinator inventory projects

Roughly a quarter of land area in the United States is managed by five federal agencies – the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Forest Service (USFS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), National Park Service (NPS), and Department of Defense (DOD). Much of this land is managed for conservation, natural resource development and preservation, economic stimulation, and recreation. As documentation of pollinator declines mounts and more species are listed as federally threatened or endangered (T&E), federal agencies and partners have initiated a range of pollinator monitoring, conservation, and research activities. The NPS Inventory and Assessment Program, part of the Inventory and Monitoring Division, is currently developing and overseeing bee and butterfly inventory projects at 25 park units. Most projects are aimed at collecting detection/non-detection and abundance information on bumble bees and T&E butterfly species in the parks to help inform park management activities, such as herbicide application, mowing, construction projects, grazing, and prescribed burning. Some parks are inventorying entire bee and butterfly assemblages to guide park management. This presentation will provide a snapshot of current and upcoming projects, highlight partners, and share notable updates from the 2024 field season. Summaries of preliminary results from inventory projects at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore (PI: Logan Rowe), and Colorado National Monument and Dinosaur National Monument (PI: Dr. Adrian Carper) will be highlighted.