Native Bee ID w/ Krystle Hickman (CNC)

Everyone can identify the (European) honey bee, but did you know that California has 1600 species of native bees? Many of these bees feature wild colors, unusual sleeping habits, and beautiful fuzzy patterns. They are also essential to the functioning of our native ecosystems! Participants at this workshop will learn more about our native bees during a mini-lecture and then head out into the garden to find (and identify) bees and other insects as part of the exciting 2024 City Nature Challenge! Community scientist and noted speaker Krystle Hickman will give a sure-to-be-amazing mini lecture and help participants identify bees in the garden. This is a rare opportunity to learn native bee identification directly from the expert herself! Krystle Hickman is a National Geographic Explorer, TEDx speaker, artist, community scientist, and photographer based in Los Angeles, California. Through artful photography, Krystle strives to increase awareness of the decline in native bee species as well as highlight their biodiverse ecosystems. Her photography has been featured in The LA Times, magazines, children's books, and scientific journals. She is the author and creator of Native Bees of the Western United States Vol. 1. Krystle travels throughout the world documenting rare native bees while spreading the message of conservation. Her work doesn't involve any lethal sampling of collecting of specimens. "The great thing about Community Science is that there is no barrier to entry. All it takes is a bit of interest and a curious mind. Who knows where that might lead?" (Krystle Hickman) City Nature Challenge is a global competition between cities to see who can record the most observations of the plants and animals in their area! You can learn more about the competition (which depends on the hard work of community scientists) here and more about why it is important to science here!