The sight and sound of bumble bees buzzing from flower to flower is a treasured feature of our gardens, parks, and meadows through the northern spring and summer. Comprising about 250 species worldwide, bumble bees are all relatively large, furry bees (Fig. 1) [1]. Their fur is often colorful, with yellow, white, red, and black bands, providing warning signals to prospective predators that they can sting. These patterns vary greatly between and within species, but otherwise bumble bees exhibit remarkable little morphological variation, so that reliably distinguishing between species is often difficult.
Buff-tailed bumble bee, Bombus terrestris. The hairy bodies of bumble bees trap pollen and are a factor in making them effective pollinators. (Photos by Pieter Haringsma)
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References
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Goulson, D. (2019). Bumble Bees (Bombus). In: Starr, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Social Insects. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90306-4_17-1
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