COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Biodiversity Conservation Partnership (OBCP) has made significant strides in preserving the state’s bee population through its ongoing Ohio Bee Survey. Now entering its fifth year, the survey has already identified more than 330 species of bees in Ohio, including nearly 50 specialist species.

The survey aims to identify and understand the ecological roles of bees, particularly in relation to pollination and biodiversity conservation.

The OBCP, founded in 2010 at Ohio State University, has become a vital resource for wildlife conservation efforts across the state.

Karen Goodell, a professor at Ohio State Newark and a member of OBCP, said the survey provides key insights into how pollinators support crop production and what measures are needed to help protect them.

“We were able to look at some species-specific patterns,” Goodell said. “We found where certain types of bees with particular traits that might make them more vulnerable and may lead them to need a more specialized diet.

“Specialist bees have narrow diets, restricting their pollen collection to a few plant species, and often exhibit specific habitat associations, too. We’ve collected a ton of ecological data over the last few years about these rare species. Now we know where they occur and have a better understanding of their habit requirements.”

As part of the survey, 155 collection kits were distributed to collectors across Ohio. These collectors trapped specimens once a week using bee bowls. Researchers, students, division employees and even “community scientists” were among those contributing to OBCP’s work.

The findings from the survey can guide farmers and conservation efforts to create habitats that support bee populations, ultimately benefiting food production and biodiversity. This survey is a vital tool for understanding and protecting Ohio’s pollinators, ensuring the health of the agricultural ecosystems.

“There are certain things we won’t be able to grow and produce commercially without adequate pollinators,” Goodell added. “If something happens to our honeybees, we need to have a backup. We need to have some assurance.”

One method of data collection for the bee survey consisted of trapping bees in passive water traps. The traps often catch other insects as well, Goodell said.

“We call that ‘bycatch,’” she said. “Flies, butterflies, spiders, ants – we saved all those specimens, which have become sources for undergraduate projects.”

One of those projects provided a valuable update to state hoverfly species counts.

“Hoverflies are considered pollinators and beneficial insects,” Goodell said. “We’ve now completed the largest hoverfly survey of Ohio. Prior to this, the most recent one was done 100 years ago.

“Many of the bee specimens are collected by volunteers with an interest in science. There are quite a lot of people interested in pollinators in Ohio. Many retirees who are looking to do something engaging and helpful often get involved. What we’re doing is special. We are a land-grant university, and this is exactly what we’re supposed to be doing – conducting research that benefits the citizens of Ohio.”

And not just bees. OBCPs knowledge base is wide-ranging.

“We’re talking about insects to vertebrates, like rattlesnakes, hellbenders and more,” said OBCP Director H. Lisle Gibbs. “The state draws on our expertise, and we move forward with research.”

Each year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service distributes funding to each state to support animal conservation through the State Wildlife Grant Program. Ohio receives about $3 million annually, and roughly one-third goes to OBCP.

“We have Ohio State faculty working closely with the Ohio Division of Wildlife,” added Gibbs, who has been at the helm of OBCP since its inception. “We provide scientific research to help them do their job, which is to protect the biodiversity of the state.

“In addition to research, we’re doing practical things here. We’re training students who can move into jobs at the division. And the funding we receive covers all components of research, so it supports graduate and undergraduate students, as well as postdoctoral fellows at the university.”

OBCP is a collaboration between Ohio State’s Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology and the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences’ School of Environment and Natural Resources.