Pollinators are critical for maintaining the world s biodiversity, yet many populations have documented declines

One of the most common strategies in the US for combatting pollinator declines is the establishment of pollinator habitat through wildflower plantings, and yet rigorous assessments of best practices, especially within the context of climate change and nonnative species control, are sorely missing, limiting evidencebased conservation and management. Currently the US fish and wildlife service FWS has a diverse portfolio of units that vary in management plans, as well as diversity and abundance of native and nonnative flowering plants. In this collaboration, we propose to 1 compare the effectiveness and costbenefit of two common pollinator habitat preparation methods herbicide VS solarization prior to the establishment of pollinator habitat, 2 test whether geographic origin of native species can affect the climateresiliency of pollinator habitat, 3 evaluate the use of the newly established pollinator habitat by native and nonnative pollinators, and 4 test a novel automated bioacoustics method for monitoring bees in the pollinator habitat. We will do so by establishing three experimental pollinator habitat plots in five FWS units in western massachusetts. We will monitor effectiveness of the treatments for providing foraging resources to bees and monarch butterflies, reducing establishment success of invasive species, as well as determining the feasibility of implementing an automated nonlethal pollinator monitoring method in FWS refuges. These outcomes are aligned with stated FWS management plans and research objectives.