Two all-star pollinators need help that homeowners can offer

There was a time not long ago when very few people talked about pollinators. Sure, we noticed a bee or a hummingbird and recognized them as a positive things, but it was generally unremarkable.

Times have changed, and for the better, because everyone is talking about pollinators. Not “bees” but “pollinators,” which is a sure sign that a push to recognize the wide range of creatures that pollinate was successful.

Another sign is that this column falls during Wisconsin’s Pollinator Week, something that was first recognized around 2015.

There are major outcomes from increased “pollinator” awareness, and the biggest is the wide range of pollinators that exist. Bees, of course, are the first insects we think of when it comes to pollinating insects, but there are many more. Hoverflies, wasps, moths, butterflies, beetles and ants all play a role, plus non-insect pollinators including hummingbirds and bats.

There are two endangered pollinators in particular that Wisconsinites have a unique opportunity to help.

The first is the rusty patched bumblebee. This adorable and appropriately named bee — it sports a noticeably rusty patch on its back — is a keystone species that helps pollinate plants that produce seeds and fruits eaten by everything from songbirds to grizzly bears. They also pollinate important crops such as blueberries, cranberries, alfalfa and apples and are one of the only insects that pollinate tomatoes.

Several factors have contributed to this native bee’s dwindling numbers, including habitat loss and pesticides.

Because rusty patched bumblebees nest in the ground, they are particularly susceptible to pesticides that persist in agricultural fields, soil and lawns.

While all bumblebees are important pollinators, rusty patched bumblebees are particularly helpful because they are around from early spring to late fall, so they are working longer than many other bees.

Homeowners can help support them by planting native plants that flower early and late in the season and leaving some ground areas undisturbed, unmowed and with brush piles for optimal ground nesting conditions.

Wisconsin is also the state with the largest remaining population of the Karner blue butterfly, a blue-gray variety with a one-inch wingspan and a short lifespan. Living for only five to 12 days, they rarely venture more than 600 feet from where they hatch. The population has been decimated by loss of the specific oak savanna and pine barren habitat it requires.

Although adults will feed on a variety of native plants, the larvae feed on a single plant, the lavender-blue flowering native sundial lupine (Lupinus perennis), which thrives in poor, sandy soils and is distinct from the showier Russell hybrid types.

Homeowners are in a particularly good position to help not just “pollinators” in general but two important pollinators that are in need of help. Not to mention, it’s much cooler to say you spotted a rusty patched bumblebee or a Karner blue butterfly in your yard than just a “pollinator.”