Speaker Series – Native Bees in Urban and Wild Landscapes

Native Solitary Bees Across Urban and Wild Landscapes: A Community College–Pepperwood Research Partnership

Zoom link to this presentation: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89129168642

Abstract: What can native solitary bees tell us about the health of our local ecosystems—and what can community college students contribute to answering that question?

Come learn about ongoing research by Santa Rosa Junior College students into relationships between native solitary bees and their floral host plants on the SRJC campus and at Pepperwood Preserve. The students and their instructor will share what they’ve discovered about native bee diversity and floral resources across two very different landscapes: an urban community college campus and the wildlands of Pepperwood Preserve. Their work on the SRJC campus has provided insight into the importance of native plants for supporting native bees in urban areas, while surveys at Pepperwood have documented new bee occurrences on serpentine habitat, including representatives of genera with little previous documentation in Sonoma County. Together, these findings demonstrate how community college research can contribute to our understanding of local bee diversity and the habitats these often-overlooked pollinators depend on.

The students will also highlight the value of supporting research opportunities at the community college level. Hands-on research gives students the opportunity to develop real-world skills in field observation, data collection, scientific communication, and collaboration while making meaningful contributions to our understanding of local ecosystems.

Bios:

Ethan Martin is an undergraduate Biology student at SRJC planning to transfer to Sonoma State. He currently works as a Garden Intern at Shone Farm where he has been learning about soil science and sustainable agriculture. He has a passion for ecology and pictures himself in a profession involving habitat restoration or environmental compliance. While not studying or staying busy with his internships, he enjoys camping, gardening, and cooking.

Miranda Mintonye is a naturalist pursuing her career in environmental science with the end goal of becoming a park ranger. Her hobbies include nature journaling, hiking, tide pooling, and anything that includes exploring the world around her. She is grateful for the wonderful privilege of growing up in Sonoma county and falling in love with the biodiversity of this region and the unique endemic species that call it home.

Jen Palladini is an instructor in the Biology Department at Santa Rosa Junior College, where she has taught biology, botany, and ecology courses since 2014. She earned her master’s degree from Humboldt State University and her Ph.D. from the University of Montana, where her dissertation research focused on native bees. After finishing her degree, she put down the collecting net—until attending the 2022 California Native Plant Society conference, where she was recruited to join a team of community college instructors teaching students to sample native bees on their campuses. Since then, she has returned to native bee research, working with students to investigate bee–plant relationships on campus and at the Pepperwood Preserve with support from the NSF and the Pepperwood Barnhart Internship. Connecting community college students with hands-on research and conservation opportunities is one of her priorities as an educator.