Lisa Scott
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (July 06/05) - The NWT likely has more than 100 species of bees buzzing around gardens, forests and marshes. With no entomologists who study insects working for the territorial government, the exact numbers aren't known.

"Nobody has much information on bees in the North," says Suzanne Carriere, a wildlife biologist with the department of environment and natural resources.

With the help of bee expert Cory Sheffield from Nova Scotia, Yellowknife biologist Anne Gunn is delving into the world of the industrious insects, species by species.

A trip to Fort Simpson should add some species of bees to the 35 Gunn has collected over the last five years in Yellowknife.

As well as the field work, Sheffield recently put on workshops on how to identify bees and on Northern species.

Starting this year, the data go will on the GNWT species information base. In 2006, rankings will be added to the list for public perusal, showing which species are secure or at risk, says Carriere.

The project is part of the federal, provincial and territorial collaboration on the Accord for the Protection of Species at Risk, developed in 1998.

The GNWT will also be updating its rankings on freshwater fish, birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles, says Carriere.

Gunn wasn't sure how many bee species she and Sheffield would find outside the city. She was surprised by the 35 or more found on searches through Willow Flats, Negus Pond and the ski club trails.

"The more species, the better your understanding," she says.