TCN: iDigBees Network, Towards Complete Digitization of US Bee Collections to Promote Ecological and Evolutionary Research in a Keystone Clade

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iDigBees Network, Towards Complete Digitization of US Bee Collections to Promote Ecological and Evolutionary Research in a Keystone Clade

iDigBees
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Project Summary
Current Research
Project Websites
Publications

Project Summary

Bees are the most important pollinators in both managed and natural landscapes, and concerns are quickly growing about declines in bee diversity and numbers. Only a fraction of the ca. 4,000 known bee species in the United States have adequate data for assessing their presence or absence in an ecosystem. The iDigBees Thematic Collections Network addresses this problem by transcribing specimen label information for thousands of bee specimens in US insect collections into a shared global database. As a result, bees will become the first major insect group to have specimen data sufficiently digitized to promote research projects and support conservation efforts. Specifically, the iDigBees project will (1) map distributions for thousands of bee species and quantify patterns of bee biodiversity; (2) identify data gaps to inform future inventory and monitoring efforts; (3) reveal changes in species distributions over time through historic records; (4) document the impacts of a changing climate on bees; (5) identify critical taxa and geographic areas for conservation; and (6) establish a network of researchers, conservationists, and land managers to rapidly utilize data for research, education, public policy, and land management. The education program will coordinate an array of existing programs and create a new technology-mediated learning tool, SMARTBees, to serve high school and college students. Obtaining specimen-level data on US bee species and communities, and integrating findings into education programs, are essential steps toward addressing the pollinator crisis.

iDigBees represents an in-depth insect biodiversity digitization initiative that will mobilize at least 350,000 bee specimen records, and 6,600 high-resolution image suites. Obtaining specimen-level data on US bee species and communities is an essential step toward addressing the pollinator crisis. Via the novel networks proposed here, species distribution patterns and “extended specimen” data will emerge, leading to testable hypotheses as to underlying mechanisms and predictions on how bees will respond to future global changes. Integrated data will also shed light on how particular life-history traits life-history traits respond to environmental change. iDigBees will help to highlight candidate pollinator restoration options for agricultural, urban, and other managed landscapes. This project, in partnership with researchers and government agencies, will provide open-source datasets for policy, research, and education. The iDigBees model will be promoted throughout North America and other continents to foster "deep global digitization”. The iDigBees network integrates educational and public engagement initiatives to work with the Biodiversity Literacy in Undergraduate Education (BLUE) RCN to build and implement novel biodiversity data-centric Open Education Resources that promote student-oriented learning. SMARTBees will serve as a digital platform featuring learning modules designed to serve culturally diverse high school students who are transitioning into community college as well as first year undergraduates. Building on the extended specimen model exemplary digital bee specimens will teach students host plant relationships, key evolutionary concepts and the important role pollinators have in sustaining the biodiversity of our planet.

Current Research

See Publications

Current Project:

From Tropics to Tundra: Distributions & Suitable Habitats for >4,000 bee species from Colombia through Canada

ABSTRACT: Despite the importance of bees as pollinators, for most species little is known about their specific habitat requirements. We quantified suitable habitats for >4,000 bee species known to occur from Colombia through Canada. This covers the entire tropical to tundra ecosystem gradient and encompasses northern Mexico/southwestern United States - a documented hotspot in global bee biodiversity. The gradient examined is extensive enough to represent tropical bees such as meliponines and euglossines, as well as taxa more characteristic of temperate ecosystems such as Bombus. To quantify habitats for this hyperdiverse monophyletic clade distributed across a continental scale, we delineated bee species based on taxonomy, morphology, life history, and habitat preferences. Herein, our research: 1) Defines the boundaries and bee assemblages for the species richness in the Mexico-United States deserts; 2) Documents the changes in bee assemblages as they extend out from this desert biodiversity hotspot; and 3) Assesses whether the combination of taxa and traits in this hotspot are different from regions outside the hotspot. Our findings provide important insights not just into the habitat requirements of Anthophila, but also the evolutionary ecology of the group.

Target Journal: Ecography, Diversity & Distributions, Global Ecology & Biogeography

Project Websites & Social Media

https://idigbees.org/

Citizen Science & Outreach Projects

Project Leadership

Project sponsor: Biodiversity Outreach Network (NSF Award #2216927)

Principal Investigators (PIs): Neil Cobb (PI) , Melody Basham (Co-PI), Erika Tucker (Co-PI)

Project Collaborators

Digitizing Institutions:

Brigham Young University
Colorado State University
Mississippi State University
New Mexico State University
North Carolina State Universityy
Southeast Missouri State University
The American Museum of Natural History
University of Connecticut
University of Kentucky
University of Nebraska
University of Wyoming
Washington State University


Protocols & Workflows

Using protocols developed through SCAN, LepNet, and TPT TCNs, just making some workflows more efficient in general or more appropriate for bees.


Publications

  • (2023) James B. Dorey, Paige R. Chesshire, Angela N. Bolaños, Robert L. O’Reilly, Silas Bossert, Shannon M. Collins, Elinor M. Lichtenberg, Erika M. Tucker, Allan Smith-Pardo, Armando Falcon-Brindis, Diego A. Guevara, Bruno Ribeiro, Diego de Pedro, Erica E. Fischer, John Pickering, Keng-Lou James Hung, Katherine A. Parys, Lindsie M. McCabe, Matthew S. Rogan, Robert L. Minckley, Santiago J.E. Velazco, Terry Griswold, Tracy A. Zarrillo, Walter Jetz, Yanina V. Sica, Michael C. Orr, Laura Melissa Guzman, John A. Ascher, Alice C. Hughes, Neil S. Cobb. A globally synthesised and flagged bee occurrence dataset and cleaning workflow. Scientific Data: SUBMITTED. doi.
  • (2023) Paige R. Chesshire, Erica E. Fischer, Nicolas J. Dowdy, Terry L. Griswold, Alice C. Hughes, Michael C. Orr, John S. Ascher, Laura M. Guzman, Keng-Lou James Hung, Neil S. Cobb, Lindsie M. McCabe. Completeness analysis for over 3000 United States bee species identifies persistent data gaps. Ecography. doi https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.06584.
  • (2023) Kelsey K. Graham, Paul Glaum, Joseph Hartert, Jason Gibbs, Erika Tucker, Rufus Isaacs, Fernanda S. Valdovinos. A century of sampling at an ecological preserve reveals declining diversity of wild bees. bioRxiv: PREPRINT. doi: 10.1101/2023.01.15.524123..


Professional Presentations

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