Best Management Practices for Pollinators on Western Rangelands (Completed July 2018) BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES FOR POLLINATORS ON WESTERN RANGELANDS Gui (Completed July 2018) Stephanie McKnight Candace Fallon Emma Pelton Rich Hateld Aimée Code Jennifer Hopwood Sarina Jepsen Scott Homan Black The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation www.xerces.org The Xerces® Society for Invertebrate Conservation is a nonprot organization that protects wildlife through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitat. Established in 1971, the Society is at the forefront of invertebrate protection, harnessing the knowledge of scientists and the enthusiasm of citizens to implement conservation programs worldwide. The Society uses advocacy, education, and applied research to promote invertebrate conservation. The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation 628 NE Broadway, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97232 Tel (855) 232-6639 Fax (503) 233-6794 www.xerces.org Regional oces from coast to coast. The Xerces Society is an equal opportunity employer and provider. Xerces® is a trademark registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Oce © 2018 by The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation Primary Authors and Contributors The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation: Stephanie McKnight, Candace Fallon, Emma Pelton, Rich Hateld, Aimée Code, Jennifer Hopwood, Sarina Jepsen, and Scott Homan Black. Acknowledgments Funding for this project was provided by the US Forest Service as well as the Ceres Trust, CS Fund, The Dudley Foundation, Endangered Species Chocolate, LLC., J. Crew, Justin's, Madhava Natural Sweeteners, The New-Land Foundation, Inc., Turner Foundation, Inc., White Pine Fund, Whole Systems Foundation, and the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation members. The authors wish to thank everyone who contributed to the development of these recommendations: the twelve interviewees, forty-three survey respondents, and additional researchers and practitioners with whom we had informal conversations. Xerces Society sta members Sarah Hoyle, Jessa Kay Cruz, Angela Laws, Ray Moranz, and Mace Vaughan contributed to the development and review of specic sections. Content for the case studies was developed with contributions from Dr. Sandra DeBano, Oregon State University Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, and Mary Rowland, US Forest Service Pacic Northwest Research Station—La Grande Forestry & Range Sciences Laboratory (Case Study 7), and Laura Navarette, US Forest Service (Case Study 10). William Carromero, Tyler Johnson, Carol Spurrier, Allen Rowley, Mary Rowland of the US Forest Service, and Dr. Sandra DeBano provided input and/or review of the nal document. Editing: Matthew Shepherd, The Xerces Society Layout: Michele Blackburn, The Xerces Society Printing: Print Results, Portland, OR In accordance with Federal law and US Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) To le a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Oce of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Recommended Citation The Xerces Society. 2018. Best Management Practices for Pollinators on Western Rangelands. 126+vii pp. Portland, OR: The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. (Available online at https://xerces.org/best-management-practices-for-pollinators-on-western-rangelands). Photographs & Artwork We are grateful to the many photographers and designers for allowing us to use their wonderful photographs and artwork. The copyright for all photographs, icons, and designs is retained by the Xerces Society or the creators. None of the photographs or artwork may be reproduced without permission. For a complete list of photographers and designers, please see the Photo Credits section on page 126. If you wish to contact a photographer or designer, please contact the Xerces Society at the address above. Cover Photograph Sagebrush steppe habitat in the Santa Rosa Mountains within the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest provides a pollinator haven on rangeland in central Nevada. by Emma Pelton.. Contents Executive Summary vi Introduction 1 Report Development 2 Meet the Pollinators 4 Bees 4 Butteries and Moths 8 Other Invertebrate Pollinators 11 Birds, Bats, and other Vertebrate Pollinators 12 Threats to Pollinators and Population Declines 13 Best Management Practices for Pollinators on Western Rangelands 15 What is Good Pollinator Habitat? 15 General Considerations in Management and Restoration Projects 17 Grazing 22 Mowing and Haying 33 Prescribed Fire and Wildre 37 Restoration 44 Invasive Nonnative Plants 67 Pesticides (Herbicides, Insecticides, Fungicides) 70 Managed Pollinators 78 Recreation 83 Managing Pollinator Habitat Under Climate Change 84 Monitoring 88 Monitoring Floral Resources and Pollinator Populations 88 Literature Cited 93 Appendix A. Bumble Bee Phenology and Distribution 108 Appendix B. At-risk Pollinators in the West 112 Appendix C. Additional Resources 124 Good pollinator habitat provides multiple kinds of blooming owers which oer pollen and nectar to bees and butteries. Executive Summary Rangelands comprise the majority of public lands in the western United States and support some of the highest diversity of bee species, as well as many butteries, moths, and other pollinators. However, many of these pollinator species are declining and at-risk. Incorporating pollinators into rangeland management is essential to help recover pollinator populations as well as maintain healthy rangelands for plants, wildlife, livestock, and the people who rely on them. e Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation partnered with the US Forest Service to identify best management practices (BMPs) for pollinators on western rangelands as recommendations for land managers. ese BMPs were informed by a literature review, surveys, and interviews with pollinator experts and land managers in 2016–2018. Together, they represent the state of the knowledge about managing western rangelands for pollinators. While there is still much to learn, these BMPs provide actionable, practical recommendations that enables land managers to help conserve pollinators on public lands in the West. An overview of major pollinator groups (bees, butteries and moths, other invertebrates, and vertebrates), their status, and threats provide a primer on these animals and their needs. Good pollinator habitat provides food, shelter, and nest sites, is connected to other habitat patches, is safe from pesticides and high levels of pathogens. Overall, management and restoration which aims to incorporate pollinators should focus on incorporating heterogeneity into the landscape, considering interactions among management and environmental uctuations, and using an adaptive management framework. Management practices addressed in the BMPs include grazing, mowing, prescribed re, and pesticide use. Incorporating pollinators into restoration projects including post-wildre seeding and the sourcing and establishment of native plants are addressed, as are invasive nonnative and noxious plant management, managed pollinators, recreation, and climate change impacts. Each topic begins with summary of the known eects of each land use/ management practice on pollinators and their habitat, followed by recommendations on how to incorporate pollinator conservation into management decisions. Monitoring pollinator populations wraps up the document. All of the information is summarized for use by practitioners in the eld, but may also be useful for decision makers. Rangeland habitat in Nevada. Long-tongued bee nectaring on penstemon. Introduction “Pollinators are a key component of a healthy rangeland ecosystem.” — Black et al. (2011) Rangelands comprise the majority of public lands in the western United States, spanning a huge diversity of ecological regions, habitat types, and elevations—from grasslands to sagebrush steppe to pinyon– juniper woodlands to mountain meadows (Shiet 1994). Native pollinators are an important but oen overlooked group of animals that both rely upon and help maintain rangeland ecosystems. ere are just over 3,600 species of native bees in the United States and Canada alone, with the highest diversity of native bees on western rangelands (see Figure 1). Bees, as well as butteries, moths, and other pollinators are a key component of global and local biodiversity, but pollinators are in trouble. It is estimated that 40% of invertebrate pollinator species may be at risk of extinction worldwide due to stressors including habitat loss, pesticides, disease, and eects of climate change (IPBES 2016). A lack of pollinators can have major ecological and economic impacts on rangelands (Potts et al. 2010a, 2010b). Pollinators provide pollination services for owering plants which are fundamental components of rangeland ecosystems; approximately 85% of owering plant species are pollinated by animals (Ollerton et al. 2011) including threatened and endangered species (Tubbesing et al. 2014). ese ecological services make pollinators keystone species in terrestrial ecosystems: pollination produces the seeds and fruits which feed everything from songbirds to grizzly bears (Ollerton et al. 2011). Pollinators are also vital for agriculture with 35% of global crop production relying on insect pollination (Klein