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Nature In The Natural State: Bumblebees

Bumblebees are those bees that belong to the genus Bombus. They are generalist feeders, meaning that they feed from a variety of flowers.

One of the first bees seen in the spring and the last in the fall, the bumblebee can tolerate colder weather than most bees. Like honeybees, bumblebees are social, with a queen and workers, but they don’t make honey. A bumblebee colony lasts for only a year, after which the new queens leave to form new colonies elsewhere and the worker bees and old queen die. Most bumblebee colonies are underground.

Bumblebees need our help! Leave logs on the ground for habitat. Plant masses of flowers they can feed on. Don’t buy plants with neonicotinoids, and don’t spray pesticides.

For more information, see xerces.org.