Nicodemus Wilderness Project -- Global Registry of Apprentice Ecologists

On July 12th of 2018, I went on a 60-mile route through Northern Wisconsin that changed my life. My great uncle and I drove through the calming farmland of Frederic, Wisconsin to the majestic forests of Webb Lake. We were on a mission-- to find and count bumblebees. We arrived at our first stop at 9:20 am after turning off a county road to where the sun was shining down on an unmowed roadside. We identified plants that the Bombus genus would feed on, such as local dogbane and birds-foot trefoil. We loaded our aprons with small plastic containers, the sort of little jars for collecting urine samples, but these would be our mode of operation for catching our fuzzy pollinators.
We stood, staring at the tall grass and flowers swaying gently in the wind. At this stop, there were 2 Bombus ternarius which my uncle found in the 20 minutes we had. The B. ternarius is known as the Tricolored bumblebee, which is one of the most common bees in the Midwest. Since our trip was in late summer, all of the bees we caught were female. This is because all of the queen bees are venturing out of their underground homes to find new nests to hibernate in during winter. They will use this new home the following spring to raise another cycle of the colony.
We continued driving, stopping for 20 minutes, and then identifying and counting the bumblebees we captured. After we took a headcount, the bees were released unharmed. My favorite and most memorable stop was near a bubbling brook with crown-vetch, common milkweed, and surrounding woods. I took a deep breath, relaxing as I listened to the chirping of birds in the trees and the splash of fish in the brook. I spotted a bumble bee, drunkenly flying around, filled with sweet nectar and warmth from the sun. Noiselessly I unscrewed the white lid of the jar and I stalked up to this little yellow friend. Stepping around the stems of trefoil, I quickly snatched the bumblebee from its relaxed jaunt from flower to flower. I tenderly put the jar in the shade, away from the heat of the sun and the danger of predators. I repeated this spiritually soothing operation until the 20 minutes were up at each stop. We tallied up the number of bees, reaching a high score of 19 bees and 4 different species. All of our data was donated to the University of Minnesota. Other volunteers also helped by going on different routes all throughout the Midwest. Our combined efforts are currently helping create a comprehensive document about the impact of humans on our local environment.
That day, I learned just how important the bumblebee is to our daily lives. I appreciate them so much more because I know they are a crucial part of our ecosystems and how vast their differences are. Overall 7 stops we made, we captured 6 of the known 22 species found in the Northern US, including the uncommon Bombus borealis. It was very uplifting to know that we can bring back help species by doing simple things; simple things such as reducing herbicide use and not mowing roadsides. This has inspired me to continue going on the bee routes and talk to my science teachers about giving presentations about the bumblebees place in our ecosystem.