Bumblebee superfacts

Bumblebees in the UK

Bees are part of the very large insect Order, the Hymenoptera, which also include wasps, sawflies and parasitic wasps. There are 267 species of bee in Britain, which, apart from the bumblebees, are mostly solitary, lacking workers.

Bumblebees belong to the family Apidae, named after the Latin for a bee, Apis. All our bumblebees are in the genus Bombus, which is derived from the Latin word Bombus, meaning 'booming'. Until recently the cuckoo species were put in their own genus Psithyrus, but this is now reduced to a subgenus.

The 25 bumblebees found in Britain comprise:

• 6 cuckoo species
• 5 carder species
• 14 underground nesting species

Though our fauna is small, 10 subgenera are represented, so details of life style are varied.

Eleven species contain a total of 24 subspecies occurring in Britain and Ireland. The carder bees have the greatest number, with 6 subspecies of Moss carder bee (Bombus muscorum) alone. These subspecies are recognisable as geographically restricted variants in colour patterns of body hairs. The Outer Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland in particular are noteworthy for subspecies.

Three species are extinct (all underground nesters):-

• Apple bumblebee (Bombus pomorum), only known at Deal, Kent, and last seen in 1864.
  
• Cullem's bumblebee (Bombus cullumanus), formerly with scattered records in the southern part of Britain, was last recorded in 1941.
  
• Short-haired bumblebee (Bombus subterraneus) distribution contracted to Dungeness, Kent, where last seen in 1989. Subsequent intensive searches have drawn a blank.

One species is a recent addition:-

• Tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum), has been found in the Southampton area and Hertfordshire in very recent years, with some flourishing nests. It is brown with a white tail so very distinctive and can confidently be regarded as a new colonist in Britain.

Shrill carder bumblebee (Bombus sylvarum) © Peter Harvey

Species in the Biodiversity Action Plan (UKBAP)

Seven bumblebees have Biodiversity Action Plans. All are long-tongued bumblebees specialising in deep-nectary flowers, notably Lamiaceae (dead nettles, etc) and Fabaceae (pea-type flowers).

• Shrill carder bumblebee, Bombus sylvarum
  Formerly widespread, especially in southern England, but has undergone a rapid decline and is now largely confined to only 5 remaining meta-populations. As all carder species, it nests on the surface.
• Brown-banded carder bee, Bombus humilis
  Formerly widespread in England and parts of Wales, it has long been largely lost from the more agricultural parts of eastern England. Now it is mainly coastal in south-west England and south Wales, often on coastal grassland. It also occurs on Salisbury Plain where some extensive chalk grasslands remain intact within military training grounds. The Thames Gateway is another remaining stronghold. Elsewhere, current populations are few and scarcely viable. It nests on the surface probably in long grass or the bottom of bushes.
• Great yellow bumblebee, Bombus distinguendus
  Formerly widespread in the north of Britain but now largely confined to the Hebridean islands, the north coast of Scotland and Orkney. It nests underground.
• Large garden bumblebee, Bombus ruderatus
  Formerly in southern England, and extending into north-east England and Wales. Though declining, even in the 1970s it was still regarded as widespread, though scarce. Subsequently it has become one of the rarest and most endangered bumblebees, with very few sites left. It nests underground.
• Short-haired bumblebee, Bombus subterraneus
  Formerly widespread in England, up to southern Yorkshire; it was last recorded in Britain in 1989 at a site in the Dungeness district of Kent. It is now believed to be extinct in Britain, although a UK BAP still exists for this species. The bee nests underground.

These two species were added onto the UK BAP in 2007.

• Moss carder bumblebee, Bombus muscuorum
  Once widespread, it is now more common in Scotland and Ireland. Primarily a coastal species (except in machair areas of Scotland), it has been restricted to the linear habitats of tall, open grasslands close to sea walls and flood defences. It uses moss and leaf litter for nesting.
• Red shanked carder bumblebee, Bombus ruderarius
  Formerly considered widespread in England. In the past, it has been possibly confused with the superficially similar Bombus lapidarius, thus its true distribution remains uncertain. Population has suffered a sharp decline with confirmed records concentrated in south-east England. It is a surface-nesting species.

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