Getting closer!
Hi everyone,
Thank you so much for donating! Seeing your participation and interest in this project has meant a lot to me. What some of you might know and what you all might suspect is that behind this project lies a deep love of bees. These little creatures do so much for us. They are responsible for the pollination of 3/4 of all flowering plants and of over 130 crop species that we depend on. Without them, our lives would be drastically different (or at least our diets would be). Some of my personal bee-pollinated food favorites are: blueberries, almonds, squash, and watermelon!
But beyond a deep interest in food, I am drawn to bees because of the beauty they create in our natural spaces. Bees and flowers share an evolutionary relationship that goes back millions of years. In these relationships, the flowers rely on the bees to spread their pollen for seed/fruit production. While the bees rely on the flowers for food for both their larva and themselves. The beautiful flowers we see in our gardens and on walks through nature are there, all thanks to bees. They also bring a beauty of their own. One of the biggest joys I get in lab is looking at the emerald greens (green sweat bees, Augochlorini) and iridescent blues (orchid bees, Osmia) of bee exoskeletons under the microscope. They really shine like winged gems. Here's a great photo series highlighting diverse native bee colors.
It's from this love of bees that I developed three dissertation projects (this being one of them) focused on studying the stability and health of bee communities. With all bees do for us, studying them feels like the best way I can give back. With one month to go in fundraising, I'll need your help to get there. Please share my project page with your friends and family who may also care as much about bees as we do. Stay tuned for more bee and science facts in my field notes as the fundraiser progresses!
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