Bumble bees

The bumble bees we see flying at this time of year are young fertilised queens that have hibernated over the winter.

Bumble bees have much fatter hairier bodies than honey-bees, they forage for food, pollinate flowers and sting preditators just like honey-bees.  They also have three castes, drones (male) workers (female) and a queen. They live in a social group like honey-bees but in smaller numbers.  A bumble bee hive will have about 150 bees. Bumble bee queens gather pollen and nectar to make honey. The nests are under ground, often made from grass, in which the queen makes wax cells.  She lays an egg in some cells and stores honey in others.  The eggs hatch into worker bees and they forage for pollen and nectar to feed the larvae. And so the hive grows.  The bumble bee does not make enough honey to keep the hive alive over the winter so the drones, workers and old queen die as the cold weather sets in, and only the young fertilised queens survive. They hibernate over the winter and start the cycle over again in the spring.

Photos by Diane Purtell