06/11/2026
For our Celebrate Invertebrates event on June 6th visitors had the opportunity to learn about aquatic invertebrates and our native bees! Thanks to Board member Carl Berkowitz for this write-up and photos.
Shannon and Mike Truex brought microscopes and magnifying glasses for viewing of freshly-caught (and still alive!) invertebrates netted that morning from mud along the marshy shoreline of the Quail Trail. Dragonfly larva, striders and a variety of small critters living in our shoreline were easily seen at their display and then returned to their home waters.
And Master Melittologist (a scientist who studies bees) Lisa Robinson gave two presentations. Her first talk was explaining the difference between a bee, wasp and fly. She then led participants on a ‘bee-watching’ tour of the McNary Heritage and Pollinator Gardens where a number of bees mentioned in her talk were observed. Her second presentation focused on activities of the Washington Native Bee Society and the iNaturalist project. Volunteers for the project are needed to help identify our native bee population and the plants that they are found on.
