Tuesday, 24 May 2016
LO3: User input
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LO3: Page 5
About bees
Bumblebees are endearing and familiar insects. Their animated behaviour and deep buzz as they fly from flower to flower makes them a delight to watch.
There are around 275 species of bumblebee in the world, and most of these are found in the northern hemisphere, although South America has a few native species, and New Zealand has some which were introduced from Britain.
Sadly though, our bumblebees have been declining because of changes in agricultural practices that have largely removed flowers from the landscape, leaving the bumblebees with little to feed upon. Most UK species have declined greatly in recent years, and two have become extinct in the UK since 1940.
For more detailed information about why bees need our help, click here.
Where do bumblebees occur?
In the UK there are 24 species of bumblebee but only eight are commonly found in most places. Bumblebees are found in a variety of habitats and most people should be able to attract them to their gardens if they have the right kinds of flowering plants.
Some species are less common and are only found in a few locations. For example, the Great yellow bumblebee is now only found on the north coast and some islands of Scotland. This species previously had a wide distribution throughout the UK, but habitat degradation has seen its numbers decline dramatically in most places.
If you would like to find out more about bumblebees download our About bees factsheet. This leaflet is also available in Welsh; click here to download the Welsh version.
Bumblebees are endearing and familiar insects. Their animated behaviour and deep buzz as they fly from flower to flower makes them a delight to watch.
There are around 275 species of bumblebee in the world, and most of these are found in the northern hemisphere, although South America has a few native species, and New Zealand has some which were introduced from Britain.
Sadly though, our bumblebees have been declining because of changes in agricultural practices that have largely removed flowers from the landscape, leaving the bumblebees with little to feed upon. Most UK species have declined greatly in recent years, and two have become extinct in the UK since 1940.
For more detailed information about why bees need our help, click here.
Where do bumblebees occur?
In the UK there are 24 species of bumblebee but only eight are commonly found in most places. Bumblebees are found in a variety of habitats and most people should be able to attract them to their gardens if they have the right kinds of flowering plants.
Some species are less common and are only found in a few locations. For example, the Great yellow bumblebee is now only found on the north coast and some islands of Scotland. This species previously had a wide distribution throughout the UK, but habitat degradation has seen its numbers decline dramatically in most places.
If you would like to find out more about bumblebees download our About bees factsheet. This leaflet is also available in Welsh; click here to download the Welsh version.
LO3: Page 4
How are we?
HiveIT was established by a group of very passionate bloggers because of serious concerns about the 'plight of the bumblebee'. In the last 80 years our bumblebee populations have crashed. Two species have become nationally extinct and several others have declined dramatically. We wanna tell you how and what can you do!
Become a Beeloger
We're always looking for Bloggers to join our crew
info@hiveit.com
LO3: Page 3
What colour is its tail?
Our common bumblebees have tails that are either white, red, buff or brown. Some colours may fade as the bee gets older, so ‘red’ tails may begin to appear buff or orange in late summer. Also, some species have a tail that is confined to the end of the abdomen, so it can be hard to see. This is particularly true for the Early bumblebee.
What other bands can you see?
Look at the number, colour and position of bands. For example, the bee on the left has two yellow bands: one on the thorax, and one on the abdomen. The hair on its head is black. It also has a very thin fringe of buff hairs between the black and white parts of the abdomen.
Is it a 'true' or a cuckoo bumblebee?
‘True’ bumblebee workers and queens collect pollen, so they always have a back leg that has a broad shiny surface, or has a ball of pollen stuck to it. This surface is called the ‘pollen basket’. Cuckoo bumblebees do not collect pollen at all, so this part of their leg is covered in thick dark hair, and is often narrow. To make matters more confusing, 'true bumblebee' male legs look similar to cuckoo legs, but they have what may be described as an ‘incomplete basket’, with a few hairs encroaching onto the surface.
Is it a male or a female?
There are several useful clues: Males of some species have yellow hair on their head and faces. If you are able to catch the bee and put it in a pot, the shape of the underside of the abdomen is useful (where the sting comes out from a female). The antennae of males are longer, thicker and tend to be curved. Female antennae are shorter, narrower and tend to be elbowed.
Behaviour can be useful too: because males do not have to collect pollen for the nest, they tend to sit lazily on flowers. They may also be observed flying along hedgerows searching for a mate. They do not feed during this time, so will land briefly on a surface, and then fly off again. They often patrol the same area for a while, so you may see the same bee repeating the circuit over and over again. In contrast, females tend to be much busier, flying quickly from flower to flower, and rarely wasting time by resting on flowers.
The time of year can also be helpful - males become common in late summer and autumn, whereas females are present throughout the whole lifecycle.
LO3: page 2
VIDEO
ARTICLE
In 2015 the bees are still dying in masses. Which at first seems not very important until you realise that one-third of all food humans consume would disappear with them. Millions could starve. The foes bees face are truly horrifying – some are a direct consequence of human greed. We need to help our small buzzing friends or we will face extremely unpleasant consequences.
Check out THE NOVA PROJECT: www.nova.org.au
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