Spring Buzz - A Year of Bumblebees

Bumblebees Through The Year

This is a short piece on the Bees and Wasps recorded at Cromwell Bottom (CB) or or more particularly their Phrenology  = timing  through the year. You can click on the links to download a PDF  Information Sheet  of some of the Bees if you would like to learn more

Bumblebees are perhaps most familiar to most of us. The full spectrum of Bees and Wasps are bewildering in their survival strategies . We have Social bees and Solitary Bees , we have Bees that parasitise other Bees ,hence the term Cuckoo Bees and Wasps that parasitise bees , if not confusing enough !!! Bees of course differ from flies in so much as they have two pairs of Wings (4) not two as in Flies (2) Diptera of course they are usually moving that fast or folded you don't see them

Link Hoverflies or Flowerflies  which are the brightly coloured flies that can be seen in Gardens and  capitalise on Bees and Wasps By mimicking them with their  bright black and yellow abdominal patterns we have over 40+ species of Hoverflies to see at CB

Hoverfly

To  have both and more on our reserve we need to leave our flower stands in situ and yes that includes our weed and other flowering plants. The odds against our Bees are great , overdevelopment, infestation and climate change all have made an impact on British Bees.

Identifying some of the similar 25 British  Bumblebees an be tricky , even though many are quite distinct , such as the Red Tailed Bumblebee or the Tree bumblebee. We can enjoy our Bees for what they are or if you are interested you can use the Interactive NHM Bee Identifier or print off this handy in the pocket guide PDF Guide 1   PDF guide 2

The Clay Banks and paths along the river are ideal habitats for the Burrows of Solitary Bees.

At Cromwell there is a good frequency of the Honey Bee ,  hives are kept in woodland not far away

 

Anthora plumipes The hairy Footed Flower bee   generally from March to late May, but there are a few records from February, June and early July.

Bombus sylvestris

Bombus terrestris Buff tailed Bee

Early Bumblebee - Bombus pratorum 

Bombus lapidatius Red Tailed Bee Male (Yellow Banding)

Bombus vestalis Females leave hibernation during April or May. New males and females are produced in July and August.

Bombus lucorum White Tailed Bee Queens can be seen nest-searching from March onward and males can be found between July and October.

White tailed Bumblebee  Bombus lucorum Male* ( Workers are all Queens daughther s)

Bombus pasuorum or the common Carder Bee Queens emerge from hibernation from March to June; workers are present from April onwards, and males and new females from July to October

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Bombus hypnorum Tree Bumblebee ( a new British Bee that has migrated from the continent first recoded in 2001)  last year 2013 was a very good year at CB for this species.Late May and early June is peak activity season for this distinctive bumblebee,

Parasites of Bumblebees

Not any form of Bee or Wasp this is  Conops quadrifasciatus A thick headed Fly Conops quadrifasciatus is a species of fly from the genus Conops in the family Conopidae. Their larvae are endoparasites of bumble bees of the genus Bombus.

Other Interesting Relationships

There are numerous other relationships which we have yet to understand and have only recently touched upon Osmia bicolour for example builds an nest in a snail shell. Likewise the Oil beetle is a parasite of bees living in nests and completing its life cycle . even our Hoverfly larvae find their way into the nests of Social bees feeding on the detritus . The importance of Bees and Wasps is immensely   important to agriculture and pollenation of our crops that keep us fed 

Solitary Bees

Solitary Bees are also abundant at CB at as usual under recorded or un-noticed . the Genus Andrena is always around with over 200 species in that classification they can be tricky but some prominent faces stick out

Nomada flava  Group

N.ruficornis

Andrena haemorhoea The Early Mining Bee

Andrena cinerarea Grey Mining Bee which is parasitised by one of the Nomada and loves stony quarry areas semi covered with soil and characteristic white moustache

Andrena fulva The Tawny Mining Bee

Andrena nigroaenea

 

There are more sheets here if you are interested

Gardening For Bees - Spring
Gardening For Bees -Summer
Gardening For Autumn
Bee hotels

Wasps

Our Wasps include Tree Wasp Dolichovespula sylvestris

Median  Wasp Dolichovespula median


Vespula vulgaris Common Wasp

Identifying Social Wasps

Vespula rufa Red Wasp

Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris - Good Face
views in assist in Identification

Patterning Can Vary !!

Whilst most Bees and Wasps will go about their business undisturbed please be aware that these are wild creatures and possess the ability to sting and sting in number if provoked . Please respect there wild space and observe passively and without disturbing nests . 

F.E,ET. - FRESHWATER ENVIRONMENT ECOLOGY TRUST RECORDING BIODIVERSITY