What is a Bee?
Like honeybees, bumblebees are hairy and have bands on their abdomen, but they are much fatter.
© Dreamstime
Bumblebees
Bumblebees (Bombus) are social insects who live in colonies of about 150 to 200 bees at the peak of the season. They have round and fuzzy black and yellow bodies about 13 to 15 mm long. Like honeybees, they also collect nectar and pollen. Bumblebees will only sting to defend themselves and their colony, but unlike honeybees, they can sting more than once.
Bumblebees are very useful for pollination. They can pollinate plants that other pollinators cannot and they don't mind going out on overcast days. More and more bumblebees are used for pollination in greenhouses.
Their colonies are rather small because the original female usually builds the nest by herself and, in colder climates like Canada's, it is only used for one year. At the end of the season, each queen finds a new home on her own for the winter, and starts a new nest, often in a hole in the soil, the next spring.
