GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Native plants and frothy beers await at the Florida Museum of Natural History’s Pollinator Palooza on June 27 from noon to 4 p.m. at First Magnitude Brewing Co.

Presented in collaboration with the Florida Wildflower Foundation and GROW HUB, this fun-for-all-ages festival brings together free plants, special beers, family-friendly activities and educational organizations to highlight the essential roles that at-risk pollinator species like bees, butterflies and others play in our environment and how to conserve their declining numbers.

Like in the previous three editions, each visitor can choose one plant from a variety of native species, available for free on a first-come, first-served basis. Options offered will include American beautyberry, firebush, purple passionflower, climbing hydrangea, Atlantic St. John’s wort, crimsoneyed rosemallow, button rattlesnakemaster and bushy seaside oxeye.

“We are again excited to pair our conservation beer releases and native plant giveaways with Pollinator Palooza. It’s a super fun and meaningful way to get people involved,” said Jaret Daniels, curator of lepidoptera at the McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity. “Overall enthusiasm for pollinators has continued to grow, and we have certainly seen that with this event; people want to help make a difference.”

This year’s beer selection features a twist on old classics, with two new options highlighting five species that have been previously showcased. The Pollinator Palooza Hazy IPA spotlights four butterfly species, the monarch, frosted elfin, arogos skipper and Schaus’ swallowtail; while the Blue Bee Watermelon Mint Gose is named for the visually striking blue calamintha bee.

Taking place in support of National Pollinator Week, occurring from June 22 to 28, Pollinator Palooza marks the 18th and 19th beer collaborations between the Florida Museum and First Magnitude over the last decade. In a full circle moment, this year brings together the featured species from the first beer launched back in 2016 as well as the most recent edition of Pollinator Palooza: the Schaus’ swallowtail and arogos skipper.

“The Schaus was the first butterfly highlighted with our beer initiative, is our only federally endangered U.S. swallowtail and has been a real conservation success story. Beyond that, I met my wife working on it, so that makes it even extra special for me,” Daniels said.

Attendees can also enjoy live music from singer-songwriter Thomas Allain and meet scientists from the Florida Museum’s McGuire Center. Guests will have the opportunity to see live caterpillars, learn about pollinators and discover the vital conservation efforts underway to help protect endangered butterfly species and their habitats. T-shirts, tote bags and glasses will also be available for purchase, with a portion of the proceeds going to support imperiled butterfly recovery efforts in Florida.

Sponsored in part by the state of Florida through the Division of Arts and Culture and the National Endowment for the Arts.

For more information on Pollinator Palooza, visit www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/event/pollinator-palooza-2026.

-30-

Writer: Nikhil Srinivasan, nsrinivasan@floridamuseum.ufl.edu
Source: Jaret Daniels, jdaniels@flmnh.ufl.edu
Media contact: Kaitlin Gardiner, kgardiner@floridamuseum.ufl.edu