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Pollinator Week returns for its second year

Become a citizen scientist by helping your surrounding environment!

The second annual Keep Indianapolis Beautiful’s Wild Pollinator Count Week begins on Monday.

KIB’s Adam Schmutte, GreenSpace Stewardship Coordinator, & Ashley Haynes, Director of Marketing, discuss the importance of hosting a Pollinator Count Week and how you can get involved.

This week-long event will engage Indianapolis in the important work of not only counting pollinators but educating Hoosiers on the need to plant native to help people and nature thrive. “Pollinators” can be birds, bees, butterflies, beetles, or any living things that transfers pollen. Why count pollinators? One in every three bites of food we eat are impacted by bees and other pollinators.

This citizen scientist initiative is important because the data gathered will help guide conservation and restoration efforts, tree and other native plantings, as well as raise awareness of how vital pollinators are to the Indianapolis urban ecosystem.

New this year, Indianapolis residents will use the iNaturalist mobile app to log pollinator counts. Using iNaturalist is simple and will include Indy’s pollinator counts in a world-wide citizen scientist effort to understand the living things in our environment. Directions on how to use iNaturalist can be found atwww.kibi.org/kibees, where counts can also be uploaded through KIB’s website.

During Pollinator Count Week, KIB staff and volunteers will host pop-up pollinator counts throughout the city:

Wednesday, July 19

  • Pollinator Story Time at the Nora branch of the Indianapolis Public Library at 10:15 a.m.

Pollinator Counts at the Wednesday downtown Farmers Market at City Market (9 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.)

Forestry team will be in Broad Ripple Wednesday evening to prune trees and count pollinators – say hello!

Wednesday, July 20

  • Pollinator Count at Sun King Brewery from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. with Youth Tree Team Leaders

Friday, July 21

  • Pollinator Count at the Indianapolis Art Center in Broad Ripple at 10:30 a.m.

Pollinator Count Kits will also be available for download and available at all Indianapolis Public Library branches and YMCA locations. Kits include a Pollinator Data Sheet, a “Buzz Off! I’m Counting” yard sign/ruler, and a guide to common Indiana pollinators. Data can be uploaded on the KIB website, iNaturalist app, or delivered to KIB’s offices (1029 Fletcher Ave.).

Last year, nearly 200 individual counts occurred during the inaugural Pollinator Count Week; the equivalent of 772 minutes of observation that captured the activity of over 2,000 pollinators. Visit www.kibi.org/kibees to learn how to get involved.

Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. is a private, nonprofit organization with a mission to engage diverse communities to create vibrant public places, helping people and nature thrive. In 2016, KIB worked with nearly 20,000 volunteers on over 892 community projects.

To get involved, visit www.kibi.org/kibees for information about pollinators and a downloadable count sheet (PDF).

Share your #KIBees pictures on social media with the hashtag and tag @kibiorg for a chance to be featured!

  • FIRST PHOTO: Mining bee (Andrena spp.) on Narrow-leaved mountain mint (Pycanthemum tenuifolium)
  • SECOND PHOTO: Eastern bumblebee (Bombus impatiens) on Beebalm (Monarda fistulosa)
  • THIRD PHOTO: Great golden digger wasp (Sphex ichneumoneus) on Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
  • FOURTH PHOTO: Great spangled fritillary (Speyeria cybele) on narrow-leaved mountain mint (Pycanthemum tenuifolium)
  • FIFTH PHOTO: Monarch caterpillar (Danaus plexippus) on swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
  • SIXTH PHOTO: Summer azure (Celastrina neglecta) on narrow-leaved mountain mint (Pycanthemum tenuifolium)