At its 58th annual meeting, Manchester Essex Conservation Trust will host a presentation, “More Than Just Buzz: Pollinators and Their Challenges,” by UMASS Dartmouth scientist and professor Robert Gegear, PhD, who will discuss what people can do to help pollination systems at risk of local extinction in their own backyards. Dr. Gegear will also discuss his Beecology Citizen Science Project, highlighting recent examples of how communities from across Massachusetts have used his research-based native plant list to successfully restore pollination systems at risk in areas with high levels of human disturbance, including parks, golf courses, old fields with invasives (non-native plant species), agricultural areas, conservation lands, and school campuses.
Pollinators play an important role in maintaining the function and diversity of terrestrial ecosystems. Regular biproducts of native plant pollination provides food, shelter, and nesting sites for wildlife and ultimately, provides humans with important ecosystems services. The consequences of pollinator decline for our planet therefore go well beyond crop production and the agroeconomy.
The meeting will be held virtually on Zoom, from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday, November 14. Register at www.mect.org/events/
