What is the state of bees across Illinois?

The Black and Gold Bumblebee is now the official state bee. This actually came about thanks to a year of campaigning by 8th grade students at Lincoln Junior High School in Naperville after the class did research on Illinois’ native species of bees in the state, and learned about the bee's usefulness. 

They distributed presentations across the state, held a statewide vote and even testified before lawmakers. Their efforts resulted in House Bill 4438 becoming law.

A bee researcher shares more about the Black and Gold Bumblebee, and discusses how bees in general are doing across Illinois. 

GUEST

Elena Gratton
Lab Manager, The Dolezal Bee Research Lab at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign