![]() ![]() ![]() In the case of this bee, the volunteer naturalists collected the specimens that were sorted and identified by University of Virginia staff based at Blandy Experimental Farm. A number of surveys have been done across its historic range, but the rusty-patched bumble bee has not been found in most of its range since 2003. The rusty-patched bumble bee workers can be identified by a small rust-colored patch on the middle of their second abdominal segment. pensylvanicus), which the research team found at four private landowner sites during its surveys. The fungus has been implicated in the sudden decline of several other species of bumble bee across the United States, including the American bumble bee ( B. Because the rusty-patched bumble bee is now so rare, there has been little opportunity to study what affects its populations. The cause of the rusty-patched bumble bee's decline is not known for certain, but may be related to the accidental introduction of a virulent European fungus ( Nosema bombi). We've either found rusty-patched bumble bees that have developed a resistance or we've discovered one of the last colonies and will get one more glimpse before they disappear forever." As they've gone underground for the winter, we can actively look for the colony next spring, and study them and what might be affecting the species. "Where there is a worker bee, there is a colony and maybe more than one. "In 20 years of studying bees, I have never seen a rusty-patched," said Roulston. However, many native bee pollinators are at risk due to habitat loss and fragmentation, climate change, pesticide use and introduced disease and the status of many other species of native bee pollinators is unknown. Fruits and seeds derived from insect pollination are a major part of the diet of approximately a quarter of all birds and mammals. Beyond agriculture, pollinators are keystone species in most terrestrial ecosystems. In fact, about one third of the human food supply depends on insect pollination, most of which is accomplished by bees. Nearly 70 percent of all flowering plants reproduce due to pollination by bees and other pollinators. ![]() If we lose bees, we lose critically important pollinators." The decline of bee species is of great conservation concern and scientists are actively investigating potential causes to figure out what the culprit is. "Finding one bee, well this is the stuff conservationists live for. "We thought this bumble bee was extinct in this region," McShea said. The study is part of Virginia Working Landscapes, a collaborative research program aimed at discovering effective ways private landholders can practice biodiversity management. Only one individual of this now rare species was found among nearly 35,000 bees belonging to 126 species collected and examined by the study. The research team, led by Bill McShea and Tom Akre of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute and T'ai Roulston from the University of Virginia, surveyed bee populations at 17 Virginia sites from May through August to study the influence of land management on bee diversity. This formerly common bee has disappeared from 87 percent of its range in the Upper Midwest and Eastern Seaboard and is feared headed for extinction. The rusty-patched bumble bee ( Bombus affinis), which has not been seen in the eastern United States in five years, has been found by a Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute research team at Sky Meadows State Park in Delaplane, Virginia. ![]()
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