Bee here now
Steven Foster – With a sneeze and annoying avoidance to scratch itchy eyes, my mind is abuzz with new appreciation for pollen in the form of the pollinators. In recent weeks, pollinator awareness sparked by Ken Trimble’s push for the development of a “Bee City USA” designation for the City of Eureka Springs piqued my interest. As reported in the April 13 issue of the Eureka Springs Independent, city council passed Resolution #678 which “accepts the designation and commits to the standards of Bee City USA.” According to the news item by Nicky Boyette, beekeeper Ken Trimble who championed the concept, sees “the Bee City designation as a platform for educating the public.”
Since Ken first told me about the idea in the early spring, my awareness of pollinators in general, not just honeybees, has increased exponentially. The new word of the month in my vocabulary is, “hymenoptera” – the third largest insect order which includes more than 150,000 species such wasps, bees, ants, and saw flies. Many have a long proboscis designed for gathering liquids such as nectar. They also move pollen from one blossom to another, ultimately making our life on Earth possible.
During a trip to Costa Rica last month I became aware of the potentially painful stings of hymenoptera, all of which are exquisitely described in a new book by Justin O. Schmidt The Sting of the Wild just published by Johns Hopkins University Press. An entomologist at the Carl Hayden Bee Research Center in Arizona, with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service in Tucson, Ariz., Dr. Schmidt famously created the Schmidt Pain Index, a scale rating the intensity of pain of various hymenoptera stings.
When I go to the field to photograph flowers, rather than avoiding insect pollinators, I seek them out. Now that Eureka Springs has become the first Bee City USA in Arkansas (and 17th in the nation), we have the opportunity to become more aware of our pollinator friends, the birds and bees, plus beetles and butterflies. That simple awareness has expanded my desire to not only smell the roses, but see what creatures dance with them in the infinite web of life.
Our Bee City USA local working group is known as Eureka Springs Pollinator Alliance. Like us on Facebook and stay connected with future events and information. Thank you Steven!