Bee (Hymenoptera: Apiformes) species diversity and abundance on the West Eugene Wetlands

Pollinator diversity is threatened world-wide and in the Pacific Northwest, two bumble bee species are considered near or at extinction: Bombus occidentalis and B. franklini. The West Eugene Wetlands (Lane County, Oregon), a wetland reclamation project of 1,800+ acres, contains a variety of habitats: wetland, dry lowland prairie, upland prairie, oak savanna. From April to September 2008, survey and collection were performed at this site to catalog the species diversity and abundance and to determine the presence of rare pollinators, identify endemic bee species, and identify plant-pollinator interactions involving protected rare plant communities in the wetlands.