The Buzz of Activity: An Introduction to Bees

With spring rapidly heading towards summer, more and more signs of new life can be seen every day. The breeding season is certainly well underway for the birds, as well as our bees. Not as large or as vocal as our birds, bees are common visitors to our gardens that are often overlooked. The increasingly sunny weather is perfect for looking out for our buzzing neighbours. Hopefully this article will teach you a little bit more about and inspire a deeper appreciation of these furry pollinators.

Did you know that there are over 270 species of bee in Britain and Ireland? Bees are Hymenopterans: a class of insects that can be told by their narrow-waist appearance. Many will have guessed that wasps (indeed many of these can be very similar in appearance and difficult to distinguish from bees) are also in this class but – perhaps less obviously – so are ants and sawflies. Here we will look at some of the more common species of bee.

Bumblebees

When you read that this blog post was going to be about bees, I wouldn’t be surprised if the image that sprang to mind was of a bumblebee. Large, noisy and furry (and adorable!) bumblebees are more obvious and easier to identify than other bee species, not to mention they can more frequently be seen at garden flowers. There are around 24 species of bumblebee in Britain, some are ubiquitous whilst others only occur in specialised habitats. No doubt many of you can already identify different species, even if you don’t realise it!

A Buff-tailed Bumblebee, covered in pollen!

Perhaps the commonest species that you will encounter are buff-tailed bumblebees, white-tailed bumblebees, garden bumblebees, tree bumblebees, early bumblebees and red-tailed bumblebees. Buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) are large bumblebees with an orange-yellow band behind the head and another across the abdomen (the ‘tail-end’ part of the body) and their characteristic buff tail (beware, this fades to white on older bees!). This pattern is very similar to the slightly smaller white-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lucorum agg.), with a pure white tail and more lemon-yellow bands (useful for distinguishing buff- and white-tails later in the season). As well as a yellow band behind the head and a white tail, garden bumblebees (Bombus hortorum) have a wide yellow band across their middle that crosses where the abdomen and thorax (large body section behind the head) meet. Whilst also white-tailed, tree bumblebees (Bombus hypnorum) are fairly distinctive with their fluffy thorax being orange in colour. Having only arrived in Britain in 2001, the tree bumblebee is now fairly widespread. The early bumblebee (Bombus pratorum) is a relatively small bumblebee. It has a similar pattern to white-tailed bumblebees but has a red-coloured tail. Not surprisingly, the red-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) also has a red tail, however, the rest of its body is completely black.

Whilst they go by different names, carder bees and cuckoo bumblebees are also bumblebees. Carder bees are generally completely orange-brown all over. The common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum) is the species that you are most likely to come across in your garden. Cuckoo bumblebees are parasitic bees – they take over the colony of their host and deceive the workers into raising their own young. As such, cuckoo bumbles can look very similar to ‘normal’ bumblebees. Queens can be distinguished by a less hairy appearance (they have no pollen baskets) and they fly with a deeper buzz but males and workers can be rather difficult to differentiate in the field.

Honey Bees

Despite what many people think, not all bees make honey. In fact, the formation of structured hives and the production of honey is limited to only honey bees. Other bees make their homes in holes in the ground, buildings or even in hollow twigs and stems. The Western honey bee (Apis mellifera) is the only species of honey bee in Britain. It is in fact non-native, being introduced from Africa by beekeepers, but has since established feral populations and is a common sight in our countryside and gardens. Around this time, honey bees may also be seen in a dense swarm. This occurs when an existing hive has either split into two or been destroyed and the bees are on the lookout for a new home. These swarms may look intimidating but worry not, for if you keep your distance then the bees will not bother you and swarms generally move on within 24 hours.

A Fabricius' Nomad Bee from the woodland

Other Bees

Despite them containing more species, solitary bees are less well known due to their smaller size and similar appearances (especially the males). Whilst some can be accurately identified on sight, others require detailed pictures and others still can only be identified under a microscope. Andrena (mining bees) is the largest genus of bees in Britain, containing species that burrow into bare patches of ground. Of these, the tawny mining bee (Andrena fulva) is fairly obvious (being tawny coloured all over). Tawny mining bees are currently expanding their range in Scotland, so keep your eyes peeled! Another bee that you are quite likely to see is the red mason bee (Osmia bicornis). These love to nest in holes in walls and can also be readily attracted into your garden by putting up ‘bee hotels’. My favourites to look out for are nomad bees (genus Nomada; wasp-like black, yellow and red-banded bees) and blood bees (genus Sphecodes; small black and red bees). These are cleptoparasites (similar to cuckoo bumblebees) and their presence also reveals the presence of their host species without even having to see them!

In my enthusiasm, I seem to have waffled on for longer than intended – I hope that after reading all this your head isn’t buzzing! Hopefully you might look twice at our bees now, you might be surprised what you can find.

[All photographs were taken by and belong to Stephen Grover, please ask for permission if you wish to use them.]