June 22-28, 2020 is National Pollinator Week

Did you know that about one third of the foods we eat are dependent on pollinators? Not only that, but if we didn’t have pollinators, we wouldn’t have the flower gardens we enjoy, as well as many of the plant-based products we use every day. Pollinators include bees, butterflies, birds, and bats – animals and insects that carry pollen from plant to plant, allowing the plants to reproduce.

Monarch butterfly with milkweed
Monarch butterflies depend on milkweed, which is the only food source for their caterpillars. Photo courtesy USFWS.

A wide variety of pollinators live in our state. In fact, there are over 950 species of honeybees native to Colorado. However, many pollinators, including bees, are declining in number. The decline is caused by pesticides, pollution, disease, climate change, and loss of habitat and nesting sites. There are things we can do, however, to protect pollinators. These include gardening with native plants, creating habitat areas, and avoiding the use of chemical pesticides whenever possible.

Below is a list of helpful resources from our library that you can use to learn more about pollinator species in Colorado, along with ways to attract pollinators and provide habitat.

Bats

Bees

Butterflies

Hummingbirds

  • Summer’s Hummers (Colorado Division of Wildlife)
  • The Second Colorado Breeding Bird Atlas (Colorado Division of Wildlife; book available for checkout)

Plants and Habitat

Pollinator Protection and Conservation

 

a honeybee visiting a small white and yellow flower