Omaha beekeeper Mark Welsch tests a beehive for American foulbrood on Saturday, April 29, 2023, in Omaha. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

LINCOLN — There’s a “buzz” around the state this week because it is “Pollinator Week” in Nebraskas.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and its partners have scheduled a series of events to celebrate the work of pollinators like bees, which contribute more than $217 billion to the worldwide economy by pollinating crops that people and animals eat.

Among the events:

• All Month — The Nebraska Pollinator Quest, an effort to find and record as many pollinators as possible during Pollinator Week. Find a pollinator such as a bee, butterfly or hummingbird, then take a photograph of it and upload it to the cellphone app iNaturalist.

• Tuesday — “Pollinators at Ponca State Park” is an opportunity to learn about pollinators at this northeast Nebraska state park. This event is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Ponca State Park.

• Wednesday — “Wildflower Wednesday” is from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Eugene T. Mahoney State Park. Meet at the  park’s James Family Conservatory and Nature Center near Ashland.

• Saturday — “Pollinators, Plants and Prairie Pines” is an interactive event where participants will discover the vital role that bees, butterflies and more play. This event, co-hosted by Prairie Pines Partners, is at the Prairie Pines Natural Reserve, 3100 N. 112th St., Lincoln.

• Saturday — “Bee House Making and Keeping” is a chance to learn pollinator identification, make a bee house and learn how to keep bees. It begins at 2 p.m. at Lewis and Clark State Recreation Area near Crofton.

More details are available at OutdoorNebraska.gov.

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