April 30th 2023

I found the first atmospheric river of this year to be exciting, I love to get knee deep in a chaotic and dangerous weather event, but this third one is making me a little concerned. All these downed trees have me thinking about pollinator habitat. 

Tree experts and arborists described the atmospheric rivers as the perfect storm for falling otherwise healthy trees; weakened and dimished root networks resulting from drought then oversatureaed with a massive volume of water, coupled with high winds, it was easy to see the damages on the streets. 

The destruction of our large and cavity-bearing trees poses a large threat to native bee population as well as wild honeybee colonies. There is something to be said about native and solitary bees that make their habits are ground nesters or miners. This highlights the divide between fostering honeybees and solitary bees, but also demonstrates how important it is to continue to support our native bee populations.