Helping Pollinators: Interview with Dr. Stephanie Frischie of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation

Such a great chat this week with Dr. Stephanie Frischie from the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation !  Stephanie is an agronomist and native plant specialist and so generously and clearly talks us through types of pollinators we didn't know about and how to enhance habitat on our farms. The great book by Xerces that Clara refers to early on in the conversation is: Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. 2014. Farming with Native Beneficial Insects.  Ecological Pest Control Solutions. Storey Publishing. 257 pp. The resources Stephanie mentions in this episode are as follows (thanks so much for these great links Stephanie!) Bumble Bee Watch – Community Science project to observe bumble bees and bumble bee nests and upload photos for ID verification and to add to our understanding of where these insects are, when they are there and what habitat resources they are using. Bee City Canada - Bee City Canada's mission is to inspire cities, towns, First Nations, schools, businesses and other organizations to take action to protect pollinators. We offer programs that recognize communities and organizations that are taking steps or are committed to future initiatives to help pollinators. A school or a First Nation that is engaged in such activities can apply to be designated as a Bee School or Bee City. These programs are free. Skinner Native Seeds (John Skinner) in Robin MB has been our primary native seed partner with the Cheerios habitat work and offers a pollinator seed mix for the Canadian Prairies. Cheerios-Xerces Pollinator Habitat Program (available in SK and MB) – contact me at [email protected] or 219-208-5879 Xerces publications, relevant to our conversation: Maintaining Diverse Stands of Wildflowers Planted for Pollinators Interseeding Wildflowers to Diversify Grasslands for Pollinators On-farm habitat for beneficial insects provides multiple benefits (Aug 2020 blog, including beetle banks) And Stephanie mentions Budburst Project as another community science initiative that we can get involved in!