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Or do only honey bees live in hives? Why do you see more bumblebees in gardens than honey bees?

2006-06-27 04:32:58 · 14 answers · asked by Lunar_Chick 4 in Science & Mathematics Zoology

14 answers

The bumblebee is a flying insect of the genus Bombus in the family Apidae. Like the common honeybee, of which it is a distant relative, the bumblebee feeds on nectar and gathers pollen to feed its young. They are very interesting creatures that are beneficial to humans and the plant world alike, and tend to be larger than other members of the bee family. Most, but not all, bumblebee species are gentle. From this comes their original name: "Humblebee".

Bumblebees are social insects that are characterized by black and yellow striped body, a commonality among the majority of the species of Bombus; however, some species are known to have orange or even red on their bodies. Another distinguishing characteristic a hairlike substance that covers their abdomens, making them appear fuzzy.

A long-held myth of the bumblebee was that, in terms of sheer aerodynamics, it did not have the capacity (in terms of wing size or beat per second) to achieve flight. This myth became popular after an aerodynamicist in the 1930's stated that a bumblebee was not capable of flight. The statment was based upon an assumption that the bee's wing was a smooth plane. The statement held for several weeks, creating major ripples in the media, until the aerodynamicist finally examined the insect's wing under a microscope. Finding that his initial assumption was very wrong, he put out a retraction. Although the papers dropped the original story, they only printed the retraction in a very small article near the back of the paper - thus, most readers missed the retraction, and the myth survived.

Bumblebees are typically found in higher elevations that range from warm to cool climates where other bees would not be found. One reason for this is that bumblebees are one of the few insects that can regulate their body temperature.

Bumblebees live in hives like honeybees. However, their hives are usually found in hollow underground spaces, such as abandoned rodent dwellings, where they will raise larvae and store food. They may also nest in birdhouses, bales of hay, or building walls. They particularly like the stuffing of old furniture or car seats and may thus move into junked cars or dumped upholstered furniture.

Unlike honeybees, bumblebees only store a few days' worth of food and so are much more vulnerable to food shortages. Bumblebees mostly do not preserve their nests through the winter, some tropical species live in their nests for some years. The last generation of summer includes a number of queens who overwinter separately in protected spots.1

In the autumn, young queens mate with male drone bees and hibernate over the winter in a warm area. Oftentimes, a queen will burrow into the ground to keep herself from freezing. In the spring, a queen awakens and finds a suitable place to create her hive, and then builds wax pots in which to lay her fertilized eggs from the previous winter. The eggs that hatch are female workers, and in time they populate the hive.

Bumblebees are beneficial to human beings because they can operate their hives at cooler temperatures than other species of bee. Farmers in colder climates often use bumblebees to pollinate their crops. However, bumblebees are not used to produce honey because their yield is not as large as that of the honeybee.
Nest
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Nest

Bumblebees are in danger in many developed countries due to habitat destruction and collateral pesticide damage. In Britain, there are 21 species of native bumblebee and six varieties of cuckoo bees — bees that dupe other bumblebees into looking after their young. Of these, only six bumblebees remain widespread; five are in serious decline and at least three are extinct.1

Bumblebees are increasingly cultured and used for pollination. They are the pollinator of choice for modern greenhouse tomatoes and some other crops.

2006-07-02 02:55:00 · answer #1 · answered by flymetothemoon279 5 · 6 0

Bumblebee Hive

2016-12-16 13:18:06 · answer #2 · answered by levy 4 · 0 0

They actually live in nests:
Bumblebees form colonies, much like honeybees. However, their colonies are usually much less extensive than those of honeybees, because of the small physical size of the nest cavity, the fact that a single female is responsible for the initial construction, and the restriction to a single season. Often, mature bumblebee nests will hold fewer than 50 individuals, and may be within tunnels in the ground made by other animals, or in tussocky grass.

Unlike honeybees, bumblebees only store a few days' worth of food and so are much more vulnerable to food shortages. However, because bumblebees are much more opportunistic feeders than honeybees, these shortages may have less profound effects. Bumblebees mostly do not preserve their nests through the winter, though some tropical species live in their nests for several years (and their colonies can grow quite large, depending on the size of the nest cavity). The last generation of summer includes a number of queens who overwinter separately in protected spots.

2006-06-27 04:43:14 · answer #3 · answered by ndtaya 6 · 1 0

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Bumblebees form colonies, much like honeybees. However, their colonies are usually much less extensive than those of honeybees, because of the small physical size of the nest cavity, the fact that a single female is responsible for the initial construction, and the restriction to a single season. Often, mature bumblebee nests will hold fewer than 50 individuals, and may be within tunnels in the ground made by other animals, or in tussocky grass. Bumblebees mostly do not preserve their nests through the winter, though some tropical species live in their nests for several years (and their colonies can grow quite large, depending on the size of the nest cavity). The last generation of summer includes a number of queens who overwinter separately in protected spots. In the autumn, young queens mate with male drone bees and hibernate over the winter in a sheltered area, whether in the ground or in a man-made structure. In the early spring, the queen awakens and finds a suitable place to create her colony, and then builds wax pots in which to lay her fertilized eggs from the previous winter. The eggs that hatch are female workers, and in time the queen populates the colony, with workers feeding the young and performing other duties similarly to honeybee workers.

2016-04-01 03:23:53 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

Nope
as already stated by some respondents bumble bees live in nests. these may be old mammal holes shallow underground, between rocks or rock cavites (including human made brick walls) at or above ground level and in old bird nests above ground level
probaly the key difference within the temperate zones is each colony (nest) is strated from a single overwintering queen. That is in spring there are NO workers, the queen has to forage for food for her progeny. therafter she becomes an "egg machine: like a hney bee queen, with her daughters (workers) foraging for her and her subsequent progeny. thus they are much more susceptable to flase start springs (sudden cold spells etc0 than hive dwelling honey bees
other differences as mentioned is the colony size is smaller etc etc
Totally fascinating creatures.....but then again isnt all life?!!

2006-06-29 04:21:04 · answer #5 · answered by symbiont 2 · 0 0

There have been two extensive answers to this question, both of which seem more than reasonable so I will attempt to answer the supplimentary bit
Honey bees in recent years, in the UK have been attacked by a virus - the name of which currently escapes me, but has not yet reached western Scotland
Honey bees are not native to the UK and therefore need to be "farmed" or protected in some way. If hives are wiped out by viruses, they are uneconomic to maintain.
Bumble bees are native, and therefore much hardier and more adapted to the ambient conditions.

2006-07-08 09:27:39 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

bumble bees don't live in hives - they live in little holes.

We see more honey bees than bumble bees - probable because of what's growing there and the hives are a few miles away.

You may have hives local to you

2006-06-27 04:39:57 · answer #7 · answered by JeckJeck 5 · 0 0

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2014-09-18 22:46:29 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

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2016-04-22 19:08:12 · answer #9 · answered by ? 3 · 0 0

Where Do Bumble Bees Live

2016-09-30 03:13:08 · answer #10 · answered by hannula 4 · 0 0

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