Pollinators are the friends of plants and people. Most flowering plants (~80%) are animal pollinated. Sadly, there is a global trend in pollinator declines, especially under the changing climates. To conserve pollinators, Holden Forests & Gardens has been monitoring pollinators at the arboretum since 2015. This conservation-focused monitoring effort has now brought together a diverse team across departments from Research, Horticulture, and Volunteers.

Research: Na Wei (scientist), Jessica LaBella (Norweb Fellow)

Horticulture: Ann Rzepka Budziak (director), Lori Gogolin (horticulturist)

Volunteers: Mary Brennan (naturalist), Jennifer Garry (naturalist), Chuck Miller (naturalist), and many others during 2015–2019

Holden scientist, Dr. Na Wei, is leading a science team to leverage this long-term pollinator data set for understanding how climate change affects plant–pollinator interactions. Dr. Wei is an evolutionary ecologist, and has a track record of uncovering the drivers and consequences of plant–pollinator mutualisms.