DES MOINES, Iowa (KCAU) — The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is looking for volunteers for a second year of the Iowa Bumble Bee Atlas.

The program’s goal is to get a better idea of where bumble bees live in Iowa and how many call the state home.

For volunteers, the task involves claiming a section of Iowa via a “survey grid cell” on a state map. Then they must conduct at least two 45-minute surveys within that area between June 1 and September 30 of this year. Those surveys involve finding, capturing, and photographing as many bumblebees as possible within the time period.

To sign up, volunteers must watch two training videos (found online here), create a Bumble Bee Watch account, adopt a survey grid cell, gather equipment and print off data sheets, and attend a field training session to get some experience in how to safely catch and handle the bees.

A number of in-person field trainings will be held across the state from late June through the month of July. Registration is free, but pre-registration is required. You can find the full list of locations, dates and times here.

Iowa News: