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Spring is a good time of the year to spot a queen bumblebee. After sleeping all winter, she is now busy gathering nectar from spring flowers for energy and looking for the perfect place to nest. You might be able to see her flying low along the ground in a zig-zag pattern - this is her way of searching for somewhere to establish her colony. It is necessary for the queen to have access to nearby flowers or else she will not be able to nest and look after her growing colony. Bumblebees do not make honey, so in contrast to honey bees who make enough honey to survive over winter, bumblebee colonies will die at the end of the year. It is up to bumblebee queens to establish new colonies each spring. Having a variety of flowers in your garden that bloom over the spring, summer and autumn seasons will help this year’s generation of bumblebees! Pesticides are harmful for the queen and can affect the brain development of her baby bumblebees. The queen bumblebee is much bigger than other bumblebees. She can measure up to 23mm in length. In Chile, the Bombus dahlbomii bumblebee queen can grow to 40mm in length. They’re often described as ‘flying mice’. ‘Buzz pollination’ happens when the bumblebee emits a high-pitched buzz that helps to release pollen. The queen bumblebee can decide whether an egg will form a female or male bumblebee. If you see an exhausted bumblebee on the ground, feed it with some water mixed with sugar or honey to help it get its energy back. www.studyseed.co.uk = #iNEE PHatl.IM/PBsiIEiEPEiE*E.5' = ! * ↳ thorax ¥i% abdomen got bands FAIT µqm T#HEIMPORTANCEOf'¥LowE ii. " " " " I . . . . . " " " ! . . . . . . " " " :( ÷÷B:¥÷s *" INTERESTING FACTS 4- → ¥ * ¥¥ ↳ . - =
