Virtual | Pollinator Week Champaign-Urbana

Bugging Out With Bugscope

Date: Thursday June 25, 2026
Time: 2:00PM – 5:00PM CT
Audience: Public (All Ages)
Location: Beckman Institute Room 1005, Southeast side of the building (Urbana, IL), Bugscope Zoom Link (Virtual)

Description: Come see pollinators like you’ve never seen before. The Beckman Institute’s Bugscope team will simultaneously host an in-person & hybrid Bugscope sessions which will feature looking at insect pollinators & pollen using a scanning electron microscope.

In-person activities will consist of looking at specimens with a light microscope & scanning electron microscope. Every 30min, groups will be able to see the scanning electron microscope in action. Online participants can join the session anytime between 2-5pm via zoom and participants can ask questions about what they are seeing on the microscope and insect pollinators in general. We hope to see you there!

Learn more on the Beckman Institute’s Bugscope page. For questions, email bugscope@beckman.illinois.edu or call (217) 265-8164.

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BeeBlitz

Date: Sunday June 28, 2026
Time: 9:00AM – 1:00PM CT
Audience: Public (All Ages)
Location: Meadowbrook Park (Urbana, IL), Pollinatarium (Urbana, IL), Virtual
Description: This is an informal in-person and virtual bioblitz event for tracking bee demographics in the Midwest hosted by BeeSpotter! Nature lovers in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, and Ohio are invited to get outside and snap pictures of honey & bumble bees for BeeBlitz. Then, upload your findings to BeeSpotter, the citizen science project run in collaboration between the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Department of Entomology and the Office for Mathematics, Science, and Technology Education.

The times listed are for folks wishing to join us in Champaign-Urbana, but you can go BeeBlitzing any time this weekend!

Learn more about the BeeBlitz

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Garden Speaker Series: Pollinator Pockets

Date: Tuesday June 23, 2026
Time: 4:00PM – 5:30PM CT
Audience: Public (Adults)
Location: Museum of the Grand Prairie (Mahomet, IL)
Description: Celebrate Pollinator Week with a free presentation about landscaping that supports ecosystem health. We will learn how to design pollinator-friendly spaces at whatever scale you have to work with. Then, take a guided walk through the Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden to catch a glimpse of some plant-pollinator interactions.

In person and virtual option available. Register by June 22 to receive details about attending virtually. No registration required for in-person.

For questions, call (217) 896-2455 or email mduerksen-balk@ccfpd.org.

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