Cooperative Agreement for Affiliated Partner with the Great Lakes Northern Forest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU)

The U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Fort Collins Science Center is offering a cooperative-agreement funding opportunity to a CESU partner having capability to conduct research and studies related to the long-term demography of bumble bees, with a focus on imperiled species. The research will focus on Bombus affinis (rusty patched bumble bee), the previously-widespread bumble bee species whose populations have declined precipitously over the past two decades. This project will leverage collaborations to incorporate expertise in bumble bee ecology into a large existing project supporting the recovery of endangered and imperiled bumble bees. Current research interests include (1) the establishment and maintenance of site surveys to document long-term trends of rusty patched bumble bee, (2) studies that explore novel technologies for the monitoring of bumble bees, (3) studies that assess the types of sampling effort needed to achieve statistically viable assessments of bumble bee population trends, and (4) efforts to facilitate the compilation of data on bumble bee demography. The outcome of a successful agreement will be research products that help DOI and other land-management partners better understand and implement recovery strategies for imperiled bumble bees. Through this CESU agreement, the federal and state university partners will cooperate fully in development of a research program that will produce final products to be used in support of management decisions pertaining to bumble bees. The cooperation of the USGS and its CESU partner brings a combination of expertise to address this objective that is greater than that possessed by either partner on its own. Bumble bees are important wildlife throughout the world and provide considerable economic benefit to cropping systems that require insect (and particularly buzz) pollination. Several previously-common bumble bee species in North America have declined markedly over the past two decades, prompting the listing of RPBB on the Endangered Species Act and petitions to list several other bumble bees as endangered. Many knowledge gaps have been identified that hamper the conservation of these species. A major knowledge gap is the long-term trends in these bumble bee species' populations. Determination of long-term trends in bumble bees (or any wildlife populations) requires considerable commitment as well as the development of sustainable and cost-effective monitoring methods. Rapid methods have been recently developed to determine annual bumble bee occupancy rate of sites. This project will guide work to implement those protocols to establish long-term trends in bumble bee presence, help develop methods to determine bumble bee abundance, and explore new technologies for detecting the abundance and presence of bumble bees at local sites in the Upper Midwest. Pollinator conservation is among the top priorities for many land managers, and additional information is required to support management decisions and work toward the recovery of endangered pollinators. This project aligns strongly with EO 14192 - Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation and SO 3421 - Achieving Prosperity through Deregulation as research to demonstrate pollinator recovery is necessary to avoid unnecessary regulatory actions in accordance with EO 14192 and SO 3421. This project funds population monitoring of federally listed rusty patched bumble bee to track progress toward recovery and inform future delisting decisions. The population estimates that are being created via this project and agreement will be used as evidence by states and private stakeholders that will allow them to avoid regulation tied to the abundance of rusty patched bumble bee nests. Furthermore, this project includes working with the Army Corps of Engineers to create automated monitoring systems that will drastically reduce the costs from DOW facilities needed to monitor bumble bees.