There’s been a lot of concern lately about our pollinator friends amidst reports of declining populations of bees and other beneficial insects. The loss of pollinators is of great concern because many agricultural crops would be less productive and of lower quality without certain insects. Insect pollinators provide us with essential services valued in the billions of dollars.
Pollinators face multiple threats, including habitat destruction, disease, parasites, and insecticides. By understanding these threats and seeking to minimize them, we can better protect the health of pollinators and ourselves. The future of our food supply is not the only thing at risk here. Insects also pollinate plants that are not crops, and make the world as we know it possible.
Prairie Rivers Network invites you to attend a Pollinator Panel, which we are co-sponsoring with Champaign County Soil and Water Conservation District and University of Illinois Extension. Four panelists will discuss threats to pollinators and what homeowners and farmers can do to help. We have organized this panel because efforts that protect pollinators will ultimately benefit our lakes and streams. For example, flowering prairie plantings established along streams to attract pollinators will simultaneously buffer the streams from any upgradient, polluted stormwater runoff.
Thursday, January 22, 2015
4:00-5:30pm
University of Illinois Extension Building Auditorium
801 N. Country Fair Drive, Champaign
Seating is limited.
Speakers:
May Berenbaum – University of Illinois
Emil Blobaum – Beekeeper
Jason Bleich – Pheasants Forever
Sandy Mason – UIUC Extension
