Bumble Bee Custom Search
Fifty species of the bees are known in North America. One species, the Cuckoo Bumble Bee, a parasitic bee, will take over the nest of a non-parasitic bee and use the workers to raise the young they bring in. Their characteristics are similar to their close relatives, the honey bees, in that their colonies are headed by a queen, the main egg-layer. Their size make them seem awkward in their movement from one flower to another. The workers (daughters of the queen) and drones (males) are produced during the mating season, which is the warm season. They collect nectar and use to make honey but only what they need, no more. The bees can shake their flight muscles to warm themselves and are one of a few insects that can perform this function. This allows them to work at lower temperatures than most others. The nest is a single chamber in the ground left by other animals like mice which they take over. The bees are important pollinators of many plants. Both queens and workers collect pollen and transport it back to the colony in pollen baskets on their hind legs. Through research with certain bees they have developed a way for the bees to skip hibernation and pollinate all year round. Usually used in greenhouses to pollinate strawberries and tomatoes. They can sting repeatedly without losing their stinger as it has no barbs and does not become embedded in the enemy. From Bumble Bee to Beneficial Insects |
