Across Wisconsin, parts of the landscape that once supported agriculture have been restored to native prairie. The work can involve removing invasive plants, establishing native grasses and wildflowers and allowing a more varied plant community to develop over time.

That change matters to bumblebees because a field dominated by a small number of crops does not provide the same range of resources as a mature prairie. Native prairie can contain plants that flower at different points through spring, summer and autumn, giving bees access to nectar and pollen over a much longer period.

Pollinator surveys in restored areas have found a greater variety of bumblebees than in less suitable parts of the landscape, with some of the rarer species appearing only where habitat conditions have improved.

A restored prairie may look successful from a distance, but the presence of different bee species gives another indication of whether the habitat is functioning as intended. The rusty patched bumblebee makes the comparison particularly significant. Once widespread across the eastern United States and upper Midwest, its population has fallen sharply. The species is now federally endangered and has become uncommon across much of its former range.

Wisconsin restored former farmland into prairie; researchers found more bumblebees and rare species only at the restored sites.