OBA Member Outreach Submissions

Western bumble bee decline

The western bumble bee (Bombus occidentalis) was historically very common throughout the western United States and Canada. However, in the last 20 years it has declined by more than 90% according to a recent study (Graves et ...

Jess Tyler | Nov 2020 | Article

Profile of showy townsendia - Townesendia florifer

Showy townsendia - Townesendia florifer - is a member of the Sunflower or Aster Family - Compostitae. This is the largest family of flowering plants in the world, the largest in North America and the largest in the ...

Phil Paterno | Nov 2020 | Article

Profile of Oregon sunshine - Eriophyllum lanatum

Oregon Sunshine - Eriophyllum lanatum - is a member of the Sunflower or Aster Family - Compostitae. This is the largest family of flowering plants in the world, the largest in North America and the largest in the ...

Phil Paterno | Nov 2020 | Article

Resin bees

While exploring our backyard last Spring, we noted a 9mm (1/3 inch) pot-like nest sticking to a small branch of pacific ninebark (Physocarpus capitatus). We weren’t sure if it was a bee nest or not, so we placed it in ...

Tom Robertson | Nov 2020 | Article

Species profile: Suckley’s cuckoo bumble bee

Suckley’s cuckoo bumble bee (Bombus suckleyi) is named after a physician and naturalist who explored Oregon and Washington in the 1850s. This species is a social parasite of the western bumble bee (Bombus occidentalis). It has...

Jess Tyler | Nov 2020 | Article

Leave them some stem!

Leave them some stem: pruning ideas for next season’s native bees. Learn about ways to provide nesting habitat for next year’s bees from Oregon Bee Atlas Master Melittologist, Leana Dickerson. Many native bees, such as the ...

Leana Dickerson | Nov 2020 | Article

Around 70% of all bees nest below ground

That tiny ant hill you noticed may actually be the entrance to a ground nesting bee family. Next time you come across one of these mini-hills, take a closer look! Ground nesting bees may have a sentry posted at the ...

John Womack | Nov 2020 | Article

Photographing bees for iNaturalist

iNaturalist is an easy-to-use platform that allows users to upload photos of any organism (including bees) for both peer and expert identification. When taking photos of bees for submission, consider the angles you photograph your...

Anna Brown | Nov 2020 | Article

Yellow faced bumblebees and goldenrod crab spiders

In the wild, bees have many natural predators. This yellow faced bumblebee appeared to be sleeping on Goldenrod, Solidago, but when netted it was dead and had a goldenrod crab spider on its back. These spiders can change ...

Pam Hayes | Oct 2020 | Article

Sweat bees and mariposa lilies

Emerald green sweat bees like this Agapostemon texanus were collecting pollen from Sagebrush Mariposa lilies, Calochortus macrocarpus, that were blooming in mid-June on the lower John Day River. This striking bee, which has the ...

Pam Hayes | Oct 2020 | Article

Cheery garden cosmos

As August turns to September, our flowering plants are starting to wither, but in many gardens, the cheery Garden Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus) are still blooming strong. Its delicate-appearing blooms come in shades of white, pink, ...

Candy Solovjovs | Oct 2020 | Article

Fall and winter bee gardens

Many of us put much thought and planning into attracting bees to our summer flower and vegetable gardens. But come fall and winter, we often seem to forget about our buzzing friends! Now is the perfect time to start ...

Candy Solovjovs | Oct 2020 | Article

Calochortus eurycarpus (white mariposa lily)

General Bulb-forming perennial with a single grass-like stem up to 20 in tall bearing 1-5 flowers. Leaves Grass-like leaves, about as long as the flowering stem, growing from the base. Flowers Three large white petals each with...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Zigadenus elegans (mountain death camas)

General Bulb-forming perennial plant with stems up to 24 inches. All parts of the death camas are toxic, including the pollen and nectar. Leaves Narrow and grass-like, grow from the base of the plant to 1 ft long. Flowers ...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Eschscholzia californica (California poppy)

General Annual to perennial forb that is low-spreading to erect, ½-2 ft. tall. Leaves Generally blue-green in color with three finely divided lobes. Flowers Four bright orange to light yellow petals on upright, freely branching ...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Camassia quamash (common or small camas)

General Bulb-forming perennial plant that produces erect flowering stems up to 3 ft tall. Leaves Narrow and grass-like, grow up to 2.3 ft long from the base of the plant. Flowers 6 narrow, blue-violet petals form a ...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Ipomopsis aggregata (scarlet gilia)

General Biennial to perennial forb that forms a basal rosette of leaves. Individual plants remain in rosette form for one to several years and typically die after producing a flowering stem. Plants typically range from 18-24 ...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Penstemon procerus (littleflower penstemon)

General Perennial forb or subshrub that produces erect stems, 2-12 inches in height. Leaves Oval to lance shaped. Dense basal leaves have short petioles while stem leaves are clasping. Flowers Blue-purple petals are fused to form...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Lupinus argenteus (silvery lupine)

General Perennial forb or subshrub that can produce multiple erect stems, 1-2 ft in height. Stems can be hairy or not. Leaves Gray-green, palmately-compound with 5 to 9 narrow leaflets, and attached to stems with long petioles....

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Chamaenerion angustifolium (fireweed)

General Perennial forb growing from spreading root stocks. Forms stout, erect stems 1 to 6 ft tall, occasionally 9 ft, that are often reddish in color. Leaves 4 to 8 inches long, lance shaped, deep green above, paler ...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Eriogonum umbellatum (sulphur-flower buckwheat)

General A perennial forb or subshrub that typically forms low, broad mats with individual clumps ranging from 4 inches to 2 ft (sometimes up to 4 ft) tall and wide. Leaves 1 inch long and underside can be softly woolly ...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Eriogonum heracleoides (parsnip-flower buckwheat)

General A perennial forb or subshrub with a branching woody stem, 4-24 inches in height. Leaves Light green to blue-grayish, can be covered with dense white hairs. Lance shape 1-2 inches long, 4-15 times longer than their ...

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Pandemic impacts pollinator research globally

Missing the thrill of chasing bees? You’re not alone. Researchers and citizen scientists all over the globe have been missing out on important research. A recent study in the Journal of Apicultural Research surveyed bee ...

Jess Tyler | Sep 2020 | Article

Nesting habits of solitary bees

Providing healthy habitat alongside pollen and nectar sources for our native bees is one of the best ways to support a healthy pollinator population. Do you ever wonder where cavity nesting species go when they don’t have ...

Leana Dickerson | Sep 2020 | Article

Some benefits of wasps

Pollinators come in all shapes and sizes. Although we tend to recoil from the sight of wasps as they visit our picnics, set up nests in the eaves of our buildings, or dart through our outdoor spaces, they are an ...

Leana Dickerson | Sep 2020 | Article

OBA helping in the search for Franklin’s bumble bee

Last month, employees of the Fish and Wildlife Service, USFS, BLM, and some Oregon Bee Atlas members gathered on Mt. Ashland to conduct the annual survey for Franklin's bumble bee (Bombus franklinii). This rare and highly ...

Jess Tyler | Aug 2020 | Article

Bees in the vegetable garden - mustard

Want to entice more bees to your vegetable garden? Plant mustard. Bees absolutely love mustard flowers! These pretty, bright yellow flowers produce an abundance of both pollen and nectar for bees and other pollinators. A member ...

Candy Solovjovs | Aug 2020 | Article

Squash bees

Squash blossoms are prolific in Oregon gardens right now and the bees are taking notice. Squash’s delicate blossoms open and close every day, unfurling at dawn and usually closing up tight before noon. Look closely into the ...

Candy Solovjovs | Aug 2020 | Article

The buckwheat family

Learn about Desert Buckwheat and how it supports native pollinators from Master Melittologist Philip Paterno.

Phil Paterno | Jul 2020 | Article

Bumblebees and lavender

While both bumblebees (Bombus spp.) and honey bees (Apis mellifera) are attracted to lavender (Lavandula spp.), the plant is more popular among bumblebees. Bumblebees’ long tongues allow them to efficiently forage from lavender’s ...

Candy Solovjovs | Jul 2020 | Article

Blackberry bees

Himalayan blackberry — the flowers are kind of pretty and the fruit can be tasty, but the thorny branches multiply every year into a snaggle of dead (and prickly!) canes. A closer examination, however, shows there is life ...

Ellen M. Silva | Jul 2020 | Article

Sleepy bees

Have you ever looked into a flower and discovered a bee just sitting there? What is it doing? Why is it there if it isn’t gathering nectar or pollen? Take a closer look — is it actually asleep?!? Female bees retreat...

Ellen M. Silva | Jul 2020 | Article

Family Rosaceae - Rosa woodsii - Wood's rose

There are several species of wild roses in the Pacific NW that grow in a variety of habitats. Wood's rose is more common east of the Cascades than west. It is an erect, cane bearing shrub that is characterized by 5-7 ...

Phil Paterno | Jun 2020 | Article

Raspberry Canes and Carpenter Bees

Are you wanting to raise bees in your yard but feeling daunted by the requirements of a hive or Mason bee rearing? You may already have some beneficial bees nesting in your garden right now. As seen here, these friendly ...

Jocelyn McAuley | Apr 2020 | Article