USFWSThe Minnesota-Wisconsin USFWS Field Office has adapted a habitat connectivity model that considers the likelihood of B. affinis movement based on the most recent National Land Cover Database maps. This model allows us to assess the likelihood of bumble bee movement away from the locations of known records based on the manner in which various land uses and conditions may affect those movements. The polygons generated from the B. affinis habitat connectivity model suggest areas with the highest potential for the species to be present based on typical bumble bee foraging distances and suitable habitat. We have adapted the innermost ‘ring' around each B. affinis record, dated 2007-"current", to produce polygons that describe the area where there is highest potential for the species to be present (i.e., High Potential Zones). These zones although not of uniform size, have discrete boundaries that will be used by FWS field offices and served online via the FWS Information for Planning and Conservation website (IPaC, https://ecos.fws.gov/ipac/) to assist action agencies determine whether their actions are likely to may overlap with current species occurrences. As a balance between typical foraging distances and potential dispersal movements, high potential zones provide a reasonable basis for describing where the species is likely to be present and where federal agencies should cooperate with the FWS to evaluate the potential effects of their actions. In addition to typical foraging distances, however, we should also consider movements that rusty patched bumble bees may make to establish new home ranges through dispersal. Similar to the process used to model the High Potential Zones, the model produces a series of irregular rings or strata around likely dispersal zones for each record that represent successively decreasing likelihoods of movement by a bumble bee away from the point of observation based on land classifications. We then use the maximum dispersal distance of 6.2 mi (10 km) as a guide to further refine the probability of species occurrence and to identify what we refer to here as Primary Dispersal Zone. We have adapted the first four ‘rings' around each B. affinis record, dated 2007-"current", to produce polygons that describe the area where there is a reasonable potential for the species to be present (i.e., Primary Dispersal Zones). Similarly, we have also modeled additional areas around slightly older records (i.e., 2000-2006 records, Uncertain Sites); these areas are called Uncertain Zones. Both the Primary Dispersal Zones and Uncertain Zones are used when determining where non-lethal surveys are recommended and where a scientific recovery permit for surveys might be recommended.ArcGIS FeatureLayerhttps://hub.arcgis.com/datasets/b2e7e0c1ddad4f50a20bcfc1bfcfbbcb_0engU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Open DataPublicRPBB HPZModel Update [United States]Web servicesUnited StatesLast Modified: 2025-06-09