WASHINGTON — Researchers at the University of Washington have added eight never-before-recorded bee species to the state’s list of native pollinators.
While collecting pollinators in Chelan County to study how climate and wildfires affect native bee populations, Autumn Maust, a University of Washington research scientist of biology, discovered eight bee species never recorded in Washington and 100 species that had not previously been documented in Chelan County, according to UW.
“Taxonomists refer to detailed sets of characteristics to differentiate bees by family, genera and species. The morphological qualities of bees are incredibly diverse, and individual species can vary in small but significant ways. Bees can be distinguished from each other by the shape and structure of wing veins, hair color on the ‘terga’ — plates forming the bee’s abdomen — and the location of ‘scopa,’ or pollen carrying hairs," UW wrote.
If you want to learn more about Maust’s findings, click here.