Bumble Bees & Beneficials Field Day

Sunday, April 24, 2022
from 10AM to 4PM
at the MCBG Education Center
 

REGISTER NOW – Buy your admission tickets in advance and register for activities

Bumble Bees & Beneficials Field Day is a family Earth Day event to sing praise for our buzzing companions! All ages are invited to explore, observe, and engage in protecting our native pollinators. Come and enjoy family activities and entertainment from 10:00AM to 4:00PM, and learn more about the great diversity of life that makes a thriving balanced garden ecosystem! Sign up for a class with our special guests, Leif Richardson, Frédérique Lavoipierre, and Mario Abreu (more details below). There will be lots to discover both in and around the Education Center that day — displays and information from local ecological organizations, self-guided field exploration, storytelling, music, bug displays, and seed bomb building. 

Above photos courtesy of: Leif Richardson (Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation) and Frédérique Lavoipierre

THE DETAILS

• All of the day's classes and activities are free with the cost of admission. Advanced reservations are required — please purchase your admissions tickets and register for classes in advance — CLICK HERE.
• Members: All of the day's classes and activities are free for current Members of the Gardens — please register for classes and get your "Member Admission Ticket" in advance — CLICK HERE.
• Please come prepared to wear your mask indoors and please wear your mask outdoors when social distancing is not possible. 

Bring the little ones and enjoy the day, sign up for one or two classes for more in-depth learning, or become a community scientist with the California Bumble Bee Atlas to contribute to research that will protect the bees. We welcome all levels of engagement.

This will be a day for all ages to explore, observe, and engage in protecting the pollinators. It is easy and fun!

CLASSES

– – – – All classes are filled up but you can still learn and join activities at the Education Center from 10AM - 4PM– – –

There will be a number of scheduled classes starting at the Education Center. Ages 14 and up are welcome to register. Dogs are not allowed at these classes. Advanced registration is required for these classes (free to register). All classes and activities are included with the price of regular admission tickets. 
CLICK HERE to register for classes and pay admissions.

• Bumble Bee ID with Leif Richardson of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
  10:00AM to 1:00PM
  Learn to catch and identify bumble bees! In this event we'll take a leisurely walk and learn to use an insect net to collect bees from flowers. We'll explore field guides and how to use them to identify bees. In addition, participants will learn about the California Bumble Bee Atlas, a new community science project to assess the status of our state's native bumble bee pollinators. Class size is limited to 20 people.

• Native Plant Walk with Mario Abreu
  Two opportunities: 10:30AM to 12:00PM or the afternoon session is 1:30PM to 3:00PM
  Join local Naturalist and former MCBG Horticulturist, Mario Abreu, to explore the fascinating variety of native plant communities at the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens. Discover the native plants that support bumble bees and beneficial insects on the Mendocino Coast and learn to identify them. Class size is limited to 15 people – Register Now.

• Garden Allies with Frédérique Lavoipierre
  2:00PM to 4:30PM  
  Join MCBG associate Frédérique Lavoipierre, author of Garden Allies: The Insects, Birds & Other Animals That Keep Your Garden Beautiful and Thriving, for a class on beneficial insects. A brief PowerPoint lecture will be followed by a garden exploration and observation of flower-visiting insects. We will adjourn to the classroom for a close-up look at some specimens. Frédérique will be available at the end to spend a bit more time chatting, or looking at specimens, books, and other resources. Class size is limited to 20 people.

ACTIVITIES

Activities and fun for the whole family (ages 5 and up) will be available all day at the Education Center. Advanced tickets are required, but you do not need to register to participate in the activities below. All activities and classes are included with the price of regular admission tickets.
CLICK HERE to get your admission tickets.

• Building Seed Bombs
  Available from 10:00AM to 4:00PM
  Conservation Works will be teaching how to make seed bombs filled with plants that support pollinator habitat. Make a seed bomb, then take it home and start building a pollinator paradise in your home garden.

• Bug ID with the Dorothy King Young Chapter of the California Native Plant Society
  Available from 10:00AM to 4:00PM
  Self-guided field exploration and bug ID with author and pollinator conservationist, Katy Pye. The California Native Plant Society (CNPS) is a statewide non-profit organization of amateurs and professionals with a common interest in California's native plants. Its principal aims are to preserve the native flora and to add to the knowledge of members and the public at large.

• Establishing Mason Bees in a Local Fruit and Vegetable Garden
  Available from 10:00AM to 4:00PM
  Local hobbyists and gardeners Ben and Nancy Housel will be on hand to discuss their experience establishing a colony of mason bees here on the coast. Examples of bee houses and nesting material will be on display as well as practical information on maintaining a happy and disease-free colony. 

• Education & Entertainment with the Bee Bold Alliance
  Available from 10:00AM to 4:00PM
  Come learn how we shape the beauty of the World through our culture. The Bee Bold Alliance will share the "Art of Pollination" and offer stories. The Honey Hive Ensemble will entertain with song and dance from around the world. We are in an amazing time of growth, let us create a beautiful future together. Learn more about our work at www.beeboldalliance.com.

• Insect Exploration for Kids
  Available from 11:00AM to 2:00PM
  MCBG Docents will guide you through our Sprouts Program's bumble bee exploration activity.

• A Closer Look at Bugs Display
  Available from 11:00AM to 2:00PM
  Learn about how insects and plants interact and get an up-close look at specimens, books, and other resources curated by special guest speaker, Frédérique Lavoipierre.

ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUESTS

LEIF RICHARDSON

Leif is a conservation biologist for the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation who coordinates the California Bumble Bee Atlas project (more detail below). His research focuses on the ecology, distribution, and decline of North American bumble bees. Leif previously worked as an environmental consultant, studying pesticide risk to bee pollinators, and as an ecologist for Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. He is co-author of a range of scientific publications on bees, including Bumble Bees of North America: An Identification Guide (2014, Princeton University Press), the standard reference manual on this group of insects. He is an expert in the inventory and identification of bumble bees and has extensive experience training others to collect bumble bee distribution data in the field. Leif holds a Master’s degree from the University of Arizona and a PhD from Dartmouth College. Click here to sign up for Lief's Bumble Bee ID class.

California Bumble Bee Atlas training workshops
Join a community science collaboration between CDFW and The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation to find out more about California’s native bumble bees while collecting data to help conserve declining species. Volunteers will learn to handle and identify bumble bees, and will submit photo vouchers and habitat data to BumbleBeeWatch.org. Register for the project and sign up for training workshops to be held March-May: https://www.cabumblebeeatlas.org/. For more information, contact Leif Richardson: leif.richardson@xerces.org.

Learn more about the California Bumble Bee Project at www.cabumblebeeatlas.org and become a community scientist!

FRÉDÉRIQUE LAVOIPIERRE

Frédérique Lavoipierre was the director of education at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, where she shared her enthusiasm for native plants and insects. Prior to working at the Garden, she was the founding director of the Sustainable Landscape Professional Certificate Program at Sonoma State University, where she also revived the Garden Classroom program, and established an entomology outreach program. Frédérique holds a M.Sc. in biology, with an emphasis on ecological principles of sustainable landscapes. Her research focused on plant/insect interactions. Prior to her graduate work, she founded and operated an organic nursery specializing in heirloom vegetables and culinary herbs from around the world. She currently lectures, teaches, and works as a consultant. She serves on the editorial advisory group for the American Public Gardens Association magazine, Public Gardens, and is on the content committee for the Pacific Horticulture Society. Frédérique authored a ten-year-long series, Garden Allies, for Pacific Horticulture Magazine, and continues her contributions to the Society. Click here to sign up for Frédérique's Garden Allies class.

Learn more about Frédérique and her publications: pacifichorticulture.org/contributors/frederique-lavoipierre

MARIO ABREU

Mario Abreu retired from the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens as the Plant Propagation Supervisor, Natural Areas Coordinator, and Collections Curator after 20 years. Mario holds degrees in Natural History, and Liberal Arts and Science. He has interned for the California Department of Fish and Game Mesocarnivore Assessment, Denver Botanical Gardens Applied Plant Conservation Program, and the College of the Redwoods Plant/Lichen Herbarium.

As a CA State Park Aide for Big River State Park, Mario was a contributing botanist for an invasive weed survey. In recent years, he has worked with Professor Teresa Sholars’ survey team to document local Mendocino native plant habitats for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (Pygmy Forest), and the Dorothy King Young Chapter of the California Native Plant Society (Coastal Bluff).

Mario is a passionate natural history volunteer docent for the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens, California State Parks, MendoParks, Dorothy King Young Chapter of the California Native Plant Society, and the UC Berkeley Sudden Oak Death Blitz Citizen Science Program. He also finds time to manage natural history displays at the Ford House Museum in Mendocino that include wildflowers, mushrooms, and the local Ecological Terrace Staircase and its associated Pygmy Forest plant community. Click here to sign up for Mario's Native Plant Walk.

THE DETAILS

• All of the day's classes and activities are free with the cost of admission. Advanced reservations are required — please purchase your admissions tickets and register for classes in advance — CLICK HERE.
• Members: All of the day's classes and activities are free for current Members of the Gardens — please register for classes and get your "Member Admission Ticket" in advance — CLICK HERE.
• Please come prepared to wear your mask indoors and please wear your mask outdoors when social distancing is not possible. 
• The class will include indoor instruction and guided field walks. Please be prepared for the weather with appropriate layers.
• Please come prepared with drinking water, snacks (Rhody's Café will be open at the front entry), a notebook, and a pen.

This will be a day for all ages to explore, observe, and engage in protecting the pollinators. It is easy and fun!