Beverley
Beekeepers' Association
The
local Beekeeping Association for East
Yorkshire
Bumblebees
The bumblebee is the largest of the common bees. It is
easily visible to the naked eye, they
vary in size depending on the species, but generally are a
rounded, hairy flying insect,
striped black / yellow, red /yellow. They can be totally
black.
When seen in the garden these bees are usually solitary,
foraging on plants either for pollen
to feed the young or nectar to feed the adult bees.
Bumblebee colonies are started anew each season by a single
queen. She will have
hibernated through the winter and sought out a suitable
site for the nest, usually a cavity like
an old shrews nest or something similar. A colony will
usually have between 50 and 200
bees. The success of the colony will depend on forage being
available between April and
September when the new young queens will leave the colony
and prepare for their winter
hibernation. The bumblebee nest will only last for a year
and will not be used again.
Bumblebees do not swarm like the honey bee.
Bumblebees are not aggressive and do not string unless
threatened for example when
caught accidentally in clothing such as
washing.
Bumblebees have declined in numbers over recent years and
two species have been lost.
They are vital for pollination.
Useful websites are numerous – these sites are very good.
www.wikipedia.org/wiki/bumblebee
Hercules.usersnetlink.co.uk/Bee.html