In the summer of 2025, targeted monitoring in Elk Island National Park confirmed the presence of the endangered Macropis cuckoo bee, a species not recorded in Alberta for over a decade. This rediscovery highlights the value of habitat-informed surveys and the importance of paying attention to species that are easily overlooked.

With news reports about colony collapse, climate change, and ubiquitous pesticides, saving the planet by keeping honey bees seems like a good idea. But is that just “beewashing”?