Course Registration
ADV - MPS - Pollinator Workshop at the Minnesota Zoo, Apple Valley
MPS - Pollinator Workshop at the Minnesota Zoo, Apple Valley website
13000 Zoo BoulevardApple Valley, MN 9200
Join experts from the University of Minnesota’s Native Bee Lab, along with some of the Minnesota Zoo’s Naturalists and Pollinator Conservation Team, for an in-depth, hands-on exploration of pollinators and other floral visitors. Explore key characteristics and basic biology of different pollinator groups and how their adaptations influence their ecosystem connections.
Highlights include:
• both high-level and detailed overviews of pollinator group traits, including bumble and solitary bees, flies, moths, and more.
• small-group learning with preserved insect specimen sets.
• an up-close look at imperiled prairie butterfly caterpillars with leaders in their conservation.
• visiting other animal pollinators around the Zoo.
Recommended pre-learning content will be available before the training to help ensure a baseline understanding of pollinators and pollination so we can discuss more in-depth about pollinator groups in the workshop.
Fee: $120 for Zoo members; $130 for Non-Members (includes Zoo admission after the workshop)
Lunch is not included
Meeting location: Main (lower south) entrance
Program maximum: 48 participants
Accessibility: Participants may travel a total of 2-3 miles on indoor/outdoor paths, potentially including minimal off-trail travel. For mobility or other accessibility questions/concerns, please email educate@mnzoo.org to chat about the specific program(s) you would like to attend.
Instructors: Leah Darst, Elaine Evans & Elise Bernstein.
Click the website above or "take course" to go to an external site to complete payment. Please note your seat is NOT reserved until your payment is processed.
Registration closes at noon on Monday, May 31, 2027.
The course cost is $130 and includes course manuals and supplies.
Course Dates:
Meeting from 9:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. on:
- Saturday, June 5, 2027
Instructor Information
Leah Darst is the Adult Programs Specialist at the Minnesota Zoo; creating and offering a variety of interactive educational programs for adults interested in animals and the natural world. She has been a naturalist at seven nature centers across Minnesota since 2003, the Minnesota Zoo since 2008, and through her own business, Nature Enthusiations, since 2020. She was also an Education Specialist with Monarch Joint Venture and has been on the Board of Directors and held various roles with the Minnesota Dragonfly Society since 2018. This 'bug lady' is an enthusiastic educator who loves finding connections with people to collaboratively learn and share about the natural world, with a special interest in invertebrates, community science, and conservation. In her limited free time, she enjoys creating ‘wearable teaching tools’, photographing nature, playing Wingspan, and hanging out with her husband and basset hound.
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