BEES ARE WHAT’S RIGHT WITH OUR CITIES.

We hear a lot about the problems facing rust belt cities: shrinking populations, decaying infrastructure, vacant properties, and more. But to native bees, the rust belt is a refuge. These cities actually keep bee populations afloat, offering habitat and resources that allow us to continue enjoying the fruits, nuts, and flowers we love so dearly (many of which are ONLY pollinated by bees)!

 
 
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Unfortunately,
like many rust belt cities,
bees are in decline.

 

Here in the Camilo Lab, we work to understand what bees need to continue thriving in urban and suburban spaces. We explore questions about urban bee diversity, plant-pollinator interactions, co-evolution, and adaptation, while promoting community-driven conservation and activism.

We help people help bees, knowing that when bees thrive, we thrive.

 

 

Watch this video to learn more

POLLINATOR POWER: Without bees, we wouldn't have fruits and vegetables. Bees need our help and they're getting a big boost in the city. St. Louis University students are surveying bees, in partnership with MDC. St. Louis is a hot spot for bees and a remnant prairie in Calvary Cemetery has the most species in the city. Photo: Doug Garfield / Universitas magazine

 

Want to learn more about urban bees?

They are tough, resourceful, and find every conceivable way to make life in the city work. They make homes in messy lawns; feed on the weeds in sidewalk cracks; and scavenge every scrap of pollen in the vacant lots around town.

 
 
 
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the latest buzz


Join us on instagram!

 
 
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because when bees thrive, we thrive.

By 2050, two of every three people will live in a city. Thus, understanding how we can maintain ecosystem services within cities (such as the pollination of crops) is essential to our survival. Explore our work to understand community-driven conservation and activism in urban environments.