The Bee Lab at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is involved in a number of conservation efforts that are listed below.
Schramm Education Center
We help care for a bumble bee observation hive at Schramm Education Center. Check out all the fun things to do at: http://outdoornebraska.gov/schrammeducationcenter/.
Morrill Hall
We provide honey bees for the big observation hive at Morrill Hall in the science exploration zone. To maintain it, we have to carry the observation hive out on the roof where we trade frames of bees and food resources with a mother colony so the observation hive doesn't get to big and swarm. Check out all the fun things to do at Morrill Hall: https://museum.unl.edu/.
Lauritzen Gardens
We partner with Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha to sample for native bees that visit their beautiful botanical gardens. This helps them make informed decisions on how to plan their gardens for the next season to make their flowers more attractive to our bee friends. For more information on Lauritzen Gardens, please visit: https://www.lauritzengardens.org/.
Lincoln Children's Zoo
We provide a small honey bee colony to the Lincoln Children's Zoo. Explore all the Lincoln Children's Zoo has to offer at: https://www.lincolnzoo.org/.
Nebraska Beekeepers Association
Our director, Dr. Judy Wu-Smart, sits on the board for the Nebraska Beekeepers Association (NBA). Through their efforts along with the rest of the board of directors, we are able to get information out to beekeepers across the state through newsletters and monthly webinars. The NBA also has a scholarship program that provides bees and equipment to kids ages 13-17 and pairs them with a mentor for their 1st year. Interested? Get involved today at: https://nebraskabeekeepers.org/.
Nebraska One Health
Nebraska One Health brings people together with diverse backgrounds, skills, and perspectives to improve the health of humans, animals, plants, and our shared environments.
Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
We partner with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation to sample for native bee species in Nebraska. For more information on how you can get involved, visit: https://www.xerces.org/. Alumnus Katie Lamke works with the Xerces Society.
Other Opportunities
You don't have to keep bees to help bees! You can plant bee friendly flowers, flowering pastures or bee lawns. Below is a list of resources to get started today.
- Bee and Butterfly Habitat Fund
- Donate to Give the Gift of Habitat
- Nebraska Pheasants Forever
- Stock Seed Farms
- Miller Seed Co.
- UMN Bee Lawn Research
- UNL Pollinator Habitat Certification
- Nebraska Pheasants Forever Corners for Wildlife program (PDF 2.7MB)
- Prairie Plains Resource Institute
- Nebraska Game & Parks Natural Legacy Project (PDF 7.7MB)