A call for standardization in wild bee data collection and curation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17161/jom.vi123.22533Abstract
Standardizing data collection methods is essential for advancing research, monitoring, and conservation efforts on bees. Greater consistency in data practices will enable the production of higher-quality, interoperable datasets, fostering a deeper understanding of bee populations and trends over time. This special issue series of Journal of Melittology presents six articles outlining standardized protocols and data standards to support wild bee data collection efforts, together with this article, which makes a general argument for greater standardization. These protocols are applicable to a wide range of research efforts to maximize the quality and use of wild bee occurrence data and can also be integrated into formal monitoring programs. Here, we first outline the need for, and an overview of, a series of standardized protocols and data standards developed in association with the U.S. National Native Bee Monitoring Research Coordination Network. We provide guidance on how to decide among the protocols to achieve different objectives. We then summarize key features of the protocols, including (i) how they are designed to focus on collecting only essential information, while also providing additional recommendations; (ii) that they are intended to be embedded within whatever broader sampling schemes have been designed to meet individual project or program objectives; and (iii) their emphasis on data standards. Lastly, we argue for the collection of additional ecological information that can be used to contextualize wild bee occurrence data. This information supports hypothesis testing to better understand the causal drivers underlying the status and trends of wild bees.
Metrics
References
A Collective and Ongoing Collaborative Effort by Those Who Love to Study Bees in North America. 2024. The Very Handy Bee Manual (2.0). Zenodo. https://doi. org/10.5281/zenodo.12812754. Accessed July 2024.
Acharya, R.S., J.M. Burke, T. Leslie, K. Loftin, & N.K. Joshi. 2022. Wild bees respond differently to sampling traps with vanes of different colors and light reflectivity in a livestock pasture system. Scientific Reports 12:9783. https://doi.org/10.1038/ s41598-022-10286-w.
Breeze, T.D., A.P. Bailey, K.G. Balcombe, T. Brereton, R. Comont, M. Edwards, M.P. Garratt, M. Harvey, C. Hawes, N. Isaac, M. Jitlal, C.M. Jones, W.E. Kunin, P. Lee, R.K.A. Morris, A. Musgrove, R.S. O’Connor, J. Peyton, S.G. Potts, S.P.M. Roberts, D.B. Roy, H.E. Roy, C.Q. Tang, A.J. Vanbergen, & C. Carvell. 2021. Pollinator monitoring more than pays for itself. Journal of Applied Ecology 58(1): 44–57. https:// doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.13755.
Bureau of Land Management. 2022. Strategic Plan for Pollinator Conservation. U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Division of Wildlife Conservation, Aquatics, and Environmental Protection, Lakewood, CO.
Cariveau, D.P., K.L.J. Hung, N.W. Williams, D.W. Inouye, C. T. Burns, I. Lane, K.L.J. Hung, R.E. Irwin, H.K. Levenson, B. Du Clos, & S.H. Woodard. 2024. Standardized protocol for collecting plant-pollinator interaction data. Journal of Melittology 123(4): 1–x.
Carril, O., J. Wilson, T. Griswold, & H.I. Ikerd. 2023. Wild bees of Grand Staircase- Escalante National Monument. USDA-ARS Pollinating Insect-Biology, Management, Systematics Research. Occurrence dataset https://doi.org/10.7717/ peerj.5867. Accessed November 2024 via GBIF.org.
Carvell, C. N.J.B. Isaac, M. Jitlal, J. Peyton, G.D. Powney, D.B. Roy, A.J. Vanbergen, R.S. O’Connor, C.M. Jones, W.E. Kunin, T.D. Breeze, M.P.D. Garratt, S.G. Potts, M. Harvey, J. Ansine, R.F. Comont, P. Lee, M. Edwards, S.P.M. Roberts, R.K.A. Morris, A.J. Musgrove, T. Brereton, C. Hawes, & H.E. Roy. 2016. Design and Testing of a National Pollinator and Pollination Monitoring Framework. Final summary report to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Scottish Government and Welsh Government: Project Wc1101.
Chesshire, P.R., E.E. Fischer, N.J. Dowdy, T.L. Griswold, A.C. Hughes, M.C. Orr, J.S. Ascher, L.M. Guzman, K.L.J. Hung, N.S. Cobb, & L.M. McCabe. 2023. Completeness analysis for over 3000 United States bee species identifies persistent data gap. Ecography 2023(5): e06584. https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.06584.
Dietemann, V., J.D. Ellis, & P. Neumann, eds. 2013a. The COLOSS BEEBOOK, Volume I: Standard Methods for Apis mellifera Research. Taylor & Francis; 636 pp.
Dietemann, V., J.D. Ellis, & P. Neumann, eds. 2013b. The COLOSS BEEBOOK, Volume II: Standard Methods for Apis mellifera Pest and Pathogen Research. Taylor & Francis; 636 pp.
Dietemann, V., P. Neumann, N. Carreck, & J.D. Ellis. 2019. The COLOSS BEEBOOK - Volume III, Part 1: Standard methods for Apis mellifera product research. Journal of Apicultural Research 58(2): 1–2. https://doi.org/10.1080/00218839.2019.1574449.
Dorey, J.B., E.E. Fischer, P.R. Chesshire, A. Nava-Bolaños, R.L. O’Reilly, S. Bossert, S.M. Collins, E.M. Lichtenberg, E.M. Tucker, A. Smith-Pardo, A. Falcon-Brindis, D.A. Guevara, B. Ribeiro, D. de Pedro, J. Pickering, K.L.J. Hung, K.A. Parys, L.M. McCabe, M.S. Rogan, R.L. Minckley, S.J.E. Velazco, T. Griswold, T.A. Zarrillo, W. Jetz, Y.V. Sica, M.C. Orr, L.M. Guzman, J.S. Ascher, A.C. Hughes, & N.S. Cobb. 2023. A globally synthesised and flagged bee occurrence dataset and cleaning workflow. Scientific Data 10(747). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02626-w.
Droege, S. & C. Maffei. 2023. Insect Species Occurrence Data from Multiple Projects Worldwide with Focus on Bees and Wasps in North America. Version 1.10. United States Geological Survey. Occurrence dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/6autvb. Accessed November 2024 via GBIF.org.
Droege, S., J. Engler, E. Sellers, & L. O’Brien. 2016. National protocol framework for the inventory and monitoring of bees. US Fish and Wildlife Service, Fort Collins, Colorado: http://ecos.fws.gov/ServCatFiles/reference/holding/47682.
Du Clos, B., K.C. Seltmann, N.E. Turley, C. Maffei, E.M. Tucker, I. Lane, H.K. Levenson, & S.H. Woodard. 2024a. The Wild Bee Data Standard. Journal of Melittology 123(2): 1–x.
Du Clos, B., K.C. Seltmann, N.E. Turley, C. Maffei, E.M. Tucker, I.G. Lane, H.K. Levenson, & S.H. Woodard. 2024b. Templates for The Wild Bee Data Standard (1.0.0). Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14187862.
Gezon, Z.J., E.S. Wyman, J.S. Ascher, D.W. Inouye, & R.E. Irwin. 2015. The effect of repeated, lethal sampling on wild bee abundance and diversity. Methods in Ecology and Evolution 6: 1044–1054. https://doi.org/10.111/2041-210X.12375.
Gibbs, J., N.K. Joshi, J.K. Wilson, N.L. Rothwell, K. Powers, M. Haas, L. Gut, D.J. Biddinger, & R. Isaacs. 2017. Does passive sampling accurately reflect the bee (Apoidea: Anthophila) communities pollinating apple and sour cherry orchards? Environmental Entomology 46(3): 579–588. https://doi.org/10.1093/ee/nvx069.
Hardy, S., M.T. Hallworth, M. Ferguson, N. Sharp, J. Loomis, E. Anderson, & K. McFarland. 2022. The State of Vermont’s Wild Bees 2022. https://stateofbees. vtatlasoflife.org/. Vermont Center for Ecostudies-Vermont Atlas of Life. https:// doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7261315 Accessed: 6/13/2024.
Hardy, S., K. McFarland, N. Sharp, J. Milam, M. Veit, L. Richardson, & S. Droege. 2023. Vermont Wild Bee Survey (2019–2021). Version 1.18. Vermont Center for Ecostudies. Sampling event dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/yjw5fk accessed via GBIF.org on 2024-06-13.
Ikerd, H. 2019. Bee Biology and Systematics Laboratory. USDA-ARS Pollinating Insect-Biology, Management, Systematics Research. Occurrence dataset https:// doi.org/10.15468/anyror. Accessed November 2024 via GBIF.org.
Kremen, C., N.W. Williams, & R.W. Thorp. 2002. Crop pollination from native bees at risk from agricultural intensification. PNAS 99(26): 16812–16816. www.pnas.org/ cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.262413599.
LeBuhn, G., T. Griswold, R. Minckley, S. Droege, T.A. Roulston, J. Cane, F. Parker, S. Buchmann, V. Tepedino, N. Williams, C. Kremen, & O. Messinger. 2003. A standardized method for monitoring bee populations–the bee inventory (BI) plot. https://web.archive.org/web/20180720163347id_/http://online.sfsu.edu/beeplot/ pdfs/Bee%20Plot%202003.pdf. Accessed July 2024.
LeBuhn, G., S. Droege, E.F. Connor, B. Gemmill-Herren, S.G. Potts, R.L. Minckley, T. Griswold, R. Jean, E. Kula, D.W. Roubik, J. Cane, K.W. Wright, G. Frankie, & F. Parker. 2012. Detecting insect pollinator declines on regional and global scales. Conservation Biology 27(1): 113–120. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523- 1739.2012.01962.x.
LeBuhn, G., S. Droege, E.F. Connor, B. Gemmill-Herren, S.G. Potts, R.L. Minckley, T. Griswold, R. Jean, E. Kula, D.W. Roubik, J. Cane, K.W. Wright, G. Frankie, & F. Parker. 2013. Detecting insect pollinator declines on regional and global scales. Conservation Biology 27(1): 113–120. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523- 1739.2012.01962.x.
Levenson, H.K., B.N. Metz, & D.R. Tarpy. 2024a. Effects of study design parameters on estimates of bee abundance and richness in agroecosystems: a meta-analysis. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 117(2): 92–106. https://doi.org/10.1093/ aesa/saae001.
Levenson, H.K., O. Messinger Carril, N.E. Turley, C. Maffei, G. LeBuhn, T. Griswold, N.M. Williams, K.L.J. Hung, R.E. Irwin, B. Du Clos, & S.H. Woodard. 2024b. Standardized protocol for collecting community-level bee data. Journal of Melittology 123(3): 1–x.
López-Uribe, M.M., J.P. Strange, L. Whiteman, B.N. Danforth, S. Jha, M. Branstetter, J.B.U. Koch, H.K. Levenson, B. Du Clos, & S.H. Woodard. 2024. Standardized protocols for collecting bee samples for genetic or genomic data. Journal of Melittology 123(6): 1–x.
López-Uribe, M.M., A. Soro, & S. Jha. 2017. Conservation genetics of bees: advances in the application of molecular tools to guide bee pollinator conservation. Conservation Genetics 18: 501–506. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-017-0975-1.
MacPhail, V.J., R. Hatfield, & S.R. Colla. 2024. Bumble Bee Watch community science program increases scientific understanding of an important pollinator group across Canada and the USA. PLoS ONE 19: e0303335. https://doi.org/10.1371/ journal.pone.0303335.
Mallinger, R.E., H.R. Gaines-Day, & C. Gratton. 2017. Do managed bees have negative effects on wild bees?: A systematic review of the literature. PloS ONE 12(12): e0189268. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0189268.
Montero-Castaño, A., J.B.U. Koch, T.T.T. Lindsay, B. Love, J.M. Mola, K. Newman, & J.K. Sharkey. 2022. Pursuing best practices for minimizing wild bee captures to support biological research. Conservation Science and Practice 4(7): e12734. https:// doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12734.
Montgomery, G.A., M.W. Belitz, R.P. Guralnick, & M.W. Tingley. 2021. Standards and best practices for monitoring and benchmarking insects. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2020.579193.
Nelson, G. & D.L. Paul. 2019. DiSSCo, iDigBio and the Future of Global Collaboration. Biodiversity Information Science and Standards 3: e37896. https://doi.org/10.3897/ biss.3.37896.
Orr, M.C., A.C. Hughes, D. Chesters, J. Pickering, C.D. Zhu, & J.S. Ascher. 2021. Global patterns and drivers of bee distribution. Current Biology 31(3): 451–458. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.cub.2020.10.053.
Otto, C.R.V., L.L. Bailey, T.A. Smith, E.C. Evans, I. Pearse, S. Killingsworth, B. Du Clos, S. Jepsen, & S.H. Woodard. 2024. Estimating occupancy of focal bee species. Journal of Melittology 123(5): 1–x.
Potts, S.G., J.C. Biesmeijer, C. Kremen, P. Neumann, O. Schweiger, & W.E. Kunin. 2010. Global pollinator declines: trends, impacts and drivers. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 25(6): 345–353. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2010.01.007.
Rousseau, J.S., S.H. Woodard, S. Jepsen, B. Du Clos, A. Johnston, B.N. Danforth, & A.D. Rodewald. 2024. Advancing bee conservation in the US: gaps and opportunities in data collection and reporting. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 12. https://doi. org/10.3389.fevo.2024.1346795.
Schlesinger, M.D., E.L. White, J.D. Corser, B.N. Danforth, M.K. Fierke, C.M. Greenwood, R.G. Hatfield, K.G. Hietala-Henschell, J.R. Mawdsley, K.P. McFarland, & R. Niver. 2023. A multi-taxonomic survey to determine the conservation status of native pollinators. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 11: 1274680. https://doi.org/10.3389/ fevo.2023.1274680.
Strange, J.P., M.M. López-Uribe, L. Whiteman, B.N. Danforth, S. Jha, H.K. Levenson, B. Du Clos, J.B.U. Koch, & S.H. Woodard. 2024. Standardized protocols for collecting bee samples for pathogen data. Journal of Melittology 123(7): 1–x.
Tehel, A., M.J. Brown, & R.J. Paxton. 2016. Impact of managed honey bee viruses on wild bees. Current Opinion in Virology 19: 16–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. coviro.2016.06.006.
The White House. 2014. “Presidential Memorandum - Creating a Federal Strategy to Promote the Health of Honey Bees and Other Pollinators.” Office of the Press Secretary. Available at [http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/06/20/ presidential-memorandum-creating-federal-strategy-promote-health-honey-b].
Turney, S., E.R. Cameron., C.A. Cloutier, & C.M. Buddle. 2015. Non-repeatable science: assessing the frequency of voucher specimen deposition reveals that most arthropod research cannot be verified. PeerJ 3: 31168. https://doi.org/10.7717/ peerj.1168.
US Fish and Wildlife Service. 2023. Biotic Observation Minimum Specification for FWS Inventory and Monitoring Surveys . https://ecos.fws.gov/ServCat/Reference/ Profile/153885. Accessed 14 June 2024.
Wieczorek, J., D. Bloom, R. Guralnick, S. Blum, M. Döring, R. Giovanni, R. Robertson, & D. Vieglais. 2012. Darwin core: An evolving community-developed biodiversity data standard. PloS ONE 7(1): e29715. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0029715.
Wilkinson, M.D., M. Dumontier, I.J. Aalbersberg, G. Appleton, M. Axton, A. Baak, N. Blomberg, J.W. Boiten, L.B.S. Santos, P.E. Bourne, J. Bouwman, A.J. Brookes, T. Clark, M. Crosas, I. Dillo, O. Dumon, S. Edmunds, C.T. Evelo, R. Finkers, A. Gonzalez-Beltran, A.J.G. Gray, P. Groth, C. Goble, J.S. Grethe, J. Heringa, P.A.C. Hoen, R. Hooft, T. Kuhn, R. Kok, J. Kok, S.J. Lusher, M.E. Martone, A. Mons, A.L. Packer, B. Persson, P. Rocca-Serra, M. Roos, R. van Schaik, S.A. Sansone, E. Schultes, T. Sengstag, R. Slater, G. Strawn, M.A. Swertz, M. Thompson, J. van der Lei, E. van Mulligen, J. Velterop, A. Waagmeester, P. Wittenberg, K. Wolstencroft, J. Zhao, & B. Mons. 2016. The FAIR Guiding Principles for scientific data management and stewardship. Scientific Data 3: 160018. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2016.18.
Woodard, S.H, S. Federman, R.R. James, B.N. Danforth, T.L. Griswold, D. Inouye, Q.S. McFrederick, L. Morandin, D.L. Paul, E. Sellers, J.P. Strange, M. Vaughan, N.M. Williams, M.G. Branstetter, C.T. Burns, J. Cane, A.B. Cariveau, D.P. Cariveau, A. Childers, C. Childers, D.L. Cox-Foster, E.C. Evans, K.K. Graham, K. Hackett, K.T. Huntzinger, R.E. Irwin, S. Jha, S. Lawson, C. Liang, M.M. López-Uribe, A. Melathopoulos, H.M.C. Moylett, C.R.V. Otto, L.C. Ponisio, L.L. Richardson, R. Rose, R. Singh, & W. Wehling. 2020. Towards a U.S. national program for monitoring native bees. Biological Conservation 252: 108821. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. biocon.2020.108821.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Hannah K. Levenson, Brianne Du Clos, Tamara A. Smith, Sarina Jepsen, Jeffrey G. Everett, Neal M. Williams, S. Hollis Woodard
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyright for articles published in Journal of Melittology is retained by the authors, with first publication rights granted to the journal. By virtue of their appearance in this open access journal, articles are free to use, with proper attribution and permission of the authors, in educational and other non-commercial settings.
