Red-tailed Bumblebee
Bombus lapidarius
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Jet black with a blazing orange-red tail — and the males look like a different species entirely.
A striking bumblebee: queens and workers are velvety black with a bright orange-red tail and no bands at all. Males are quite different, with yellow bands on the thorax and face as well as the red tail, and are regularly reported as something else. Red-tails favour open, sunny, flowery places — verges, brownfield ground, unimproved grassland — around Dumfries.
Behaviour
Red-tailed bumblebees are short-tongued and work open, accessible flowers such as knapweed, thistle, bramble and clover. Nests are underground, often beneath stones, walls and rubble — the scientific name lapidarius means 'of stones'. Queens are large and conspicuous in spring, patrolling low over bare ground looking for a nest site.
When to see it
Quick facts
- Family
- Bees (Apidae)
- Size
- Queens 20–22 mm
- Status
- Native; common on open flowery ground
Photo by Ivar Leidus, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons