Bug Banter with the Xerces Society

A Conservation Spotlight: The Rusty Patched Bumble Bee

The rusty patched bumble bee is a gorgeous bee, richly colored in yellow and black with a distinctive rusty brown marking on its back. It holds a special place in history

Saving Native Butterflies: One Garden at a Time

In a previous episode we highlighted the State of the Butterflies report, which found that we are losing butterflies at a rate of 1.3% per year in the contiguous US: more

Alaska and Beyond: Native Bee Conservation and Monitoring

From chasing bumble bees in Alaska to understanding native bee populations nationwide, this scientist is on a mission to better understand these important insects.  In t

Discovering Monarchs in the Sunshine State

Florida may not be the first state that comes to mind when talking about monarch butterflies. Maybe that’s because much of the conversation about monarchs focuses on thei

Backyard Bug Safari: Tools for Exploration

Do you know what insects are in your pollinator garden or in your community? How do you find them, identify them, and continue to support them? Well, if you want the answ

The Secret Life of Millipedes

Millipedes. Do they really have a thousand feet? To answer this and many other much more sensible questions, we are joined today by two people who know way more about the

Beyond the Backyard: Building Pollinator Habitat in the Community

We spend a lot of time talking about how we can create habitat for pollinators in yards, but there are other spaces too. So if you don’t have a yard or even if you do and

Goodbye Grass, Hello Bugs: Bringing Life Back to Our Yards

The color green is associated with a clean, healthy environment. When we see a green space, we often think it’s good, whether it is a beautiful forest or a neighborhood l

The Story of a Little Blue Butterfly: The Karner Blue

The Xerces Society is named for a blue butterfly, the Xerces blue, which went extinct in the 1940s. Luckily, there are other blues, some of which are doing fine and we ca

Poo Fighters and Nutrient Recyclers: the Incredible Dung Beetle

Few beetles are revered as sacred, seen as a symbol of rebirth, represented in ancient art, and to this day are used commercially for waste disposal, but dung beetles are

The Beauty of Less: Xeriscaping for Pollinators

Xeriscaping is an important tool to conserve water and creates resiliency in the face of climate change, among other benefits. In this episode, we are going to explore th

Speedy, Hairy, and Harmless: Solifuges

In this episode, we are going to explore the world of arachnids, but not the spiders you likely imagined after I said that. Nor ticks, nor mites, nor scorpions. No, today

Buying Bee Safe Plants: How to keep pesticides out of your garden

There may be a hidden danger lurking in the plants you purchase. Many plants sold at stores and nurseries, even native plants, are pre-treated with pesticides. So while t

Where the Wind Blows: Does wind speed affect overwintering monarchs?

**Correction: In this episode it states that the number of western monarchs in 2023 was 9,000 total. This was the total number for 2024. Monarch butterflies are known as

Lessons from a Pollinator Gardener

There are countless ways to support the invertebrates we care about, and creating habitat in your own backyard or community is one we’ve often discussed. Today, we’ll exp

Making the Invisible Visible: Why Science Illustration Matters

Illustration is a powerful and important tool for conservation, bringing science to life and presenting complex information in an engaging format. In this episode, we are

Bring Back the Pollinators: Four Simple Steps to Save the Bees

For years now, there’s been a growing buzz—pun intended—about how to save our pollinators. Bees, butterflies, and so many other important species are struggling, but the

Walls That Speak: Inspiring Conservation Through Art

When science and art meet they create a nexus where inspiration and education combine to create impactful outcomes. From illustrated ID guides to building-sized murals, a

A Year in Invertebrate Conservation: Successes and the Road Ahead

Over the past year, we’ve explored a diversity of invertebrates, the threats they face, and the ways we can help support them. In this episode, we’ll take a closer look a

Hidden in Plain Sight: Pesticide Contamination in Butterfly Host Plants

The State of the Butterflies in the United States project demonstrated that butterfly populations across the US are dramatically declining — they fell by more than 20% be