Celebrate Pollinators

Nature Notes |

Celebrate Pollinators

It’s Pollinator Week!

Each year in late June we celebrate the roles pollinators play in the ecosystem. Did you know that birds, bees, butterflies, beetles, bats, and other small mammals that pollinate plants are responsible for bringing us one out of every three bites of food? They also sustain our ecosystems and produce our natural resources by helping plants reproduce.

Pollinators are essential to our environment. According to the Xerces Society, the ecological service they provide is necessary for the reproduction of over 85% of the world’s flowering plants, including more than two-thirds of the world’s crop species. The United States alone grows more than 100 crops that either need or benefit from pollinators, and the economic value of these native pollinators is estimated at $3 billion per year in the U.S. Beyond agriculture, pollinators are keystone species in most terrestrial ecosystems. Fruits and seeds derived from insect pollination are a major part of the diet of approximately 25% of all birds, and of mammals ranging from red-backed voles to grizzly bears.

BLOG POSTS AND SKETCHING WORKSHOPS ON POLLINATORS

Below you can find a list of stories and sketching workshops I’ve done on animals that serve as pollinators on our planet.

Bees as Pollinators

Beetles as Pollinators

Moths as Pollinators

Butterflies as Pollinators

Hummingbirds as Pollinators

Bats and other Mammals as Pollinators

LEARN MORE ABOUT POLLINATORS!

Below you’ll find some great resources to learn more about the insects, birds, and mammals that serve as pollinators as well as ways you can make your garden more welcoming to pollinators.