Bee species richness has declined globally in recent decades due to several intertwined factors. Urbanization has both positive and negative effects on bees, with species responses being highly trait- and scale-specific. Urban environments differ from natural environments in the types of habitat and food resources they provide, but they still have the potential to provide valuable habitat to increase bee abundance and diversity. Although research on bee diversity has been conducted in cities, there has been little conducted in small towns, despite their habitat and conservation potential due to their proximity to natural areas and lack of highly developed impervious surface areas. The objective of this study was to evaluate differences in bee floral visitation in backyard gardens and nearby natural areas. In a small town, I surveyed eight sites weekly using a variable transect walk method to capture and identify bees and the flowers they landed on. There were significantly more bees and flowers at the garden sites, and floral abundance was the strongest indicator of bee visitation. The gardens also had slightly later peaks in bee visitation than the natural areas, and there were differences in floral visitation preferences for bees at the two site types. This work will help inform research and conservation practices about the potential of small towns as bee conservation areas.
