WASHINGTON STATE – Volunteers with the Washington Bee Atlas have made remarkable discoveries, uncovering bee species thought to be long gone. Over the past year, these dedicated volunteers collected more than 17,000 bees from over 600 host plants across the state.
Among the findings was a species not seen in Washington since 1917. Additionally, 15 species were documented in the state for the first time, including eight found in Chelan County by a University of Washington graduate student.
Pollinator taxonomist Karen Wright highlighted the significance of these discoveries in a press release.
“These are just preliminary findings,” she said. Wright added that there will be many more opportunities to identify new or rare species.
