Insect Species Occurrence Data from Multiple Projects Worldwide with Focus on Bees and Wasps in North America

Sam Droege1, Clare Maffei2, Elizabeth Sellers3

1 United States Geological Survey (USGS) Patuxent Wildlife Research Center (PWRC), BARC - EAST, Building 308, Room 124, 10300 Baltimore Avenue, 20705, Beltsville, United States; 2 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, ; 3 

Corresponding author(s): Sam Droege (sdroege@usgs.gov)Clare Maffei (clare_maffei@fws.gov)

Received {date}; Revised {date}; Accepted {date}; Published {date}

Citation: Combination of authors, year of data paper publication (in parentheses), Title, Journal Name, Volume, Issue number (in parentheses), and doi of the data paper.

Resource Citation

Droege S, Maffei C (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://ipt.gbif.us/resource?r=usgs-pwrc-biml&v=1.10

Abstract

Species occurrence records for native and non-native bees, wasps and other insects collected using mainly pan, malaise, and vane trapping; and insect netting methods in Canada, Mexico, the non-contiguous United States, U.S. Territories (specifically U.S. Virgin Islands), U.S. Minor Outlying Islands and other global locations with the bulk of the specimens coming from the Eastern United States often from Federal lands such as USFWS, NPS, DOD, USFS. Some records also contain notes regarding plants or substrates from which insects were collected or that were present and/or in flower at the time the insects were collected. Unless otherwise noted, taxonomic determinations (identifications) were completed by Sam Droege (USGS Eastern Ecological Science Center- EESC, Native Bee Laboratory) and Clare Maffei (USFWS, Inventory and Monitoring Branch).
The EESC Native Bee Lab currently keeps only a small synoptic collection, rare and voucher specimens are deposited in the Smithsonian National Collection (NMNH) and widely distributed to other institutions for DNA, revisions, and augmentation of existing collections.   Surplus specimens are also made available to students to learn their identifications. Corrections to any of our determinations are always welcomed. Common species that are not in demand for surplus are usually destroyed and the pins recycled. Recent revisions to Lasioglossum, Ceratina, and to a much lesser extent Triepeolus and Epeolus and other small groups have rendered determinations prior to those revisions out of date for species involved in name changes and users should account for that during analyses.  Current data (included information on specimen codes without identifications) are always available without charge directly from Sam Droege.

Keywords: Metadata, bees, pollinators, insects, social bees, solitary bees, Specimen, Occurrence

General description

Purpose: These specimen-based bee species occurrence records for insects trapped and collected in the non-contiguous United States, U.S. Territories and Minor Outlying Islands, Canada, and Mexico, represent baseline bee species occurrences. Absence of bee species from this dataset does not indicate absence of the species from the collecting location. Number of times a species is recorded in this dataset does not represent actual species abundance or common-ness but does offer an indication of fluctuations in population size.

Project details

Project title: Bees of North America (United States, U.S. Territories and Minor Outlying Islands, Canada, and Mexico)
Personnel: Samuel (Sam) Droege
Funding: Main funding is provided by United States Geological Survey (USGS), Eastern Ecological Science Center (EESC); with in-kind support from Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History; American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), Discover Life (www.discoverlife.org) and other contributors.
Study area descriptions/descriptor: Sampling for this dataset focuses on any location within the non-contiguous United States, U.S territories and Minor Outlying Islands, Canada, and Mexico, mainly in terrestrial locations. In some cases, protected areas such as national parks and wildlife refuges or specific vegetation types are targeted during collecting.

Data published through GBIF: https://ipt.gbif.us/resource?r=usgs-pwrc-biml

Taxonomic coverage

General taxonomic coverage description: Specimen-based occurrence records for native and non-native bees (Apidae), wasps, and other insects. Records for other non-target insect species commonly captured during bee collection are also recorded in this dataset including but not limited to butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera), ants (Formicidae), wasps (Apocrita), beetles (Coleoptera), spiders (Arachnida), grasshoppers (Acrididae), other true bugs (Hymenoptera), and flies (Diptera).
Taxonomic ranks
Family: Apidae, Andrenidae, Colletidate, Crabronidae, Halictidae, Megachilidae, Melittidae, Sphecidae
Common names: bumble bees, euglossine, euglossines, honey bees, stingless bees, andrenid bees, andrenids, colletid bees, plasterer bees, yellow-faced bees, crabronid wasps, cicadakillers, sand wasps, mud daubers, halictid bees, sweat bees, leafcutting bees, melittid bees, melittids, mud daubers, sphecid wasps, digger wasps, sand wasps

Spatial coverage

General spatial coverage: Canada, Mexico, Non-contiguous United States, U.S. Territories (specifically U.S. Virgin Islands), U.S. Minor Outlying Islands, and other global locations.
Coordinates: 46°47'24''S and 67°6'43.2''N Latitude; 163°28'51.6''W and 121°24'54''E Longitude 

Temporal coverage: June 4, 1990 - June 11, 2019

Natural collections description

Parent collection identifier: NA
Collection name: USGS_DRO
Collection identifier: NA
Specimen preservation method: Pinned

Methods

Method step description: Many of the methods used to collect these data are outlined or described in detail in The Very Handy Manual available online at http://bio2.elmira.edu/fieldbio/handybeemanual.html.
Study extent description: This dataset is an aggregation of numerous projects and collection efforts conducted across the United States, U.S. territories and Minor Outlying Islands, Canada, Mexico, and other global locations by employees and field personnel of the USGS, and other federal and state agencies; protected area managers, biologists, private researchers, citizen scientists and volunteers.
Sampling description: Collection methods include short-term (24 hours) and long-term (weeks, months, or continuous) operation of 12 oz or 3.25 oz pan, 64 oz vane, malaise, hand/insect net, or other traps arranged in transects or arrays of varying lengths. Some sampling methods target specific habitats, vegetation complexes, or plant or insect species. While other sampling methods aim to establish baseline data for bee species presence in protected areas such as national parks and wildlife refuges.
Quality control description: Bee species occurrence records are reviewed by project managers for accuracy and completeness. Unless otherwise noted, taxonomic determinations were completed by Sam Droege and other professional bee taxonomists where necessary (e.g. Dr. John Ascher, American Museum of Natural History; Dr. Jason Gibbs, Cornell University). If taxonomic determinations are completed by a Collector or someone other than Sam Droege, they are reviewed by Sam Droege or other professional bee taxonomists. These data are also subject to review by USGS SAS for accuracy and completeness following Darwin Core including but not limited to scientific name (syntax, spelling), and temporal and geographic information.

Datasets

Dataset description
Object name: Darwin Core Archive Insect Species Occurrence Data from Multiple Projects Worldwide with Focus on Bees and Wasps in North America
Character encoding: UTF-8
Format name: Darwin Core Archive format
Format version: 1.0
Distribution: https://ipt.gbif.us/archive.do?r=usgs-pwrc-biml
Publication date of data: 2023-08-08
Language: English
Licences of use: Public Domain (CC0 1.0)

Metadata language: English
Date of metadata creation: 2016-08-31
Hierarchy level: Dataset

References
Sellers, E. and D. McCarthy. 2015. Distribution and floral hosts of Anthophorula micheneri (Timberlake, 1947) and Hylaeus sparsus (Cresson, 1869), (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila), with new state records in Giles and Loudoun counties, Virginia, eastern USA. Check List 11(3):1665. doi:10.15560/11.3.1665 http://dx.doi.org/10.15560/11.3.1665
Larson, D. L., Droege, S., Rabie, P. A., Larson, J. L., Devalez, J., Haar, M., McDermott-Kubeczko, M. 2014. Using a network modularity analysis to inform management of a rare endemic plant in the northern Great Plains, USA. Journal of Applied Ecology, 51: 1024–1032. doi: 10.1111/1365-2664.12273 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12273
Russell, K. N., H. Ikerd, and S. Droege.  2005.  The potential conservation value of unmowed powerline strips for native bees.  Biological Conservation 124(1):133-148. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2005.01.022 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2005.01.022
Ascher, J. S., P. Ganibino, and S. Droege.  2006.  Adventive Hylaeus (Spatulariella Popov) in the New World (Hymenoptera : Apoidea : Colletidae).  Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 108(1):237-239.  http://biostor.org/reference/55432 http://biostor.org/reference/55432
Rykken, J., A. Rodman, S. Droege, and R. Grundel.  2014.  Pollinators in peril? A multipark approach to evaluating bee communities in habitats vulnerable to effects from climate change.  Park Science 31(1):84-90.   
http://www.nature.nps.gov/ParkScience/index.cfm?ArticleID=678;  http://www.nature.nps.gov/ParkScience/archive/PDF/Article_PDFs/ParkScience31(1)SpecialIssue2014_84-87_89-90_Rykken_et_al_3797.pdf http://www.nature.nps.gov/ParkScience/archive/PDF/Article_PDFs/ParkScience31(1)SpecialIssue2014_84-87_89-90_Rykken_et_al_3797.pdf
Colla, S. R., J. S. Ascher, M. Arduser, J. Cane, M. Deyrup, S. Droege, J. Gibbs, T. Griswold, H. G. Hall, C. Henne, J. Neff, R. P. Jean, M. G. Rightmyer, C. Sheffield, M. Veit, and A. Wolf.  2012.  Documenting persistence of most eastern North American bee species (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila) to 1990-2009.  Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 85(1):14-22. doi:10.2317/JKES110726.1 http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.2317/JKES110726.1 
Droege, S., M. G. Rightmyer, C. S. Sheffield, and S. G. Brady.  2010.  New synonymies in the bee genus Nomada from North America (Hymenoptera: Apidae).  Zootaxa No. 2661:1-32. http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/list/2010/2661.html
Droege, S., V. J. Tepedino, G. Lebuhn, W. A. Link, R. L. Minckley, Q. Chen, and C. Conrad.  2010.  Spatial patterns of bee captures in North American bowl trapping surveys.  Insect Conservation and Diversity 3(1):15-23. doi:10.1111/j.1752-4598.2009.00074.x http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-4598.2009.00074.x  
Droege, S., C. A. Davis, W. E. Steiner, Jr., and Mawdsley, J.  2009.  The lost micro-deserts of the Patuxent River using landscape history, insect and plant specimens, and field work to detect and define a unique community.  Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 111(1):132-144. doi:10.4289/0013-8797-111.1.132 http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.4289/0013-8797-111.1.132