Bumble Bee—A Beneficial Insect, Especially in
Cooler Temperatures
Bumble bee is the common name for a group of large, hairy, usually black-and-yellow, bees.
They're found primarily in temperate regions of the northern hemisphere, often ranging farther north and higher in altitude than other bees. They're important pollinators of many plants.
They're also found in New Zealand and Tasmania, an Australian island state.
Fifty species of the bumblebee (the alternate spelling) are known in North America.
Their size make them seem awkward in their movement from one flower to another.
Their characteristics are similar to their close relatives, the honey bees, in that their colonies are headed by a queen, the main egg-layer.
The nest is a single chamber in the ground left by other animals.
The workers (daughters of the queen) and drones (males) are produced during the mating season.
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.
They can sting repeatedly without losing their stinger as it has no barbs and does not become embedded in the enemy.
They collect nectar and use it to make honey but only what they need, no more.
The bees are important pollinators of many plants, especially at higher elevations and higher latitudes, where the temperature is often too cold for honey bees.
Both queens and workers collect pollen and transport it back to the colony in pollen baskets on their hind legs.
Researchers have developed a way for bumblebees to skip hibernation and pollinate all year round. These bees are usually used in greenhouses to pollinate strawberries and tomatoes.
One species, the parasitic Cuckoo Bumble Bee, will take over the nest of another bumble bee species, kill the queen, and use the workers to feed and raise the young. This species has lost its ability to collect pollen, making it worthless as a pollinator.
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