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Bee Campus USA - Washtenaw Community College

Bee Campus USA fosters ongoing dialogue to raise awareness of the role pollinators play in our communities and what each of us can do to provide them with healthy habitat.

Bee Campus USA News and Activities

BEE CAMPUS USA

Washtenaw Community College

 

Washtenaw Community College has been recognized as a Bee Campus USA affiliate for the third consecutive year for enhancing pollinator habitats and educating the community.  June 1, 2022.

New Pollinator Garden Buzzing with Bees July 2023

Photo of bees at the button flowers, WCC Pollinator Garden, July, 2023

WCC No Mow May

No Mow May sign on WCC Campus                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

 

 

WCC Campus participates in No Mow May to help our bee pollinators. May 2022.

"Not mowing for one month is not a magic fix to the problems bees are facing, but studies have shown that reducing and/or eliminating mowing in the spring can increase bee abundance and bee species diversity when compared to more frequently mowed lawns."

Xerces Society

News Post

Bumble Bee Atlas Project

What is Bumble Bee Watch?

Bumble Bee Watch is a collaborative effort to track and conserve North America’s bumble bees. This community science project allows for individuals to:

  • Upload photos of bumble bees to start a virtual bumble bee collection;
  • Identify the bumble bees in your photos and have your identifications verified by experts;
  • Help researchers determine the status and conservation needs of bumble bees;
  • Help locate rare or endangered populations of bumble bees;
  • Learn about bumble bees, their ecology, and ongoing conservation efforts; and
  • Connect with other community scientists.

Why a Bee Campus USA?

Washtenaw Community College values the importance of pollinators to the life cycle of flowers, plants, fruits and vegetable. Bees are the most important pollinators of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and crops like alfalfa and hay that feed our livestock.  More than one third of the world’s crops are dependent on bee pollination. Bees are not intentional pollinators; Bees need to eat. They get all their protein from pollen and all their carbohydrate from nectar. They are flower feeders.  To entice and nurture bees at WCC, the campus provides many bee friendly native flowers, a core garden, non-toxic fertilization and eradication techniques, as well as educational events about pollinators.

 

  • Ensure survival of animal species
  • Improve local food production
  • Education students and the community about the importance of bumble bees and honeybees