"As the temperatures begin to drop in the fall, you may see bumblebees flying around on days when your honeybee colony is tucked in toasty warm in the hive. The bumblebee can tolerate lower temperatures than the honeybee. Their larger size and more woolly exterior help them to produce more heat, thus allowing them to forage longer into the cold season.
As autumn approaches, under the ground, the bumblebee colony is busy raising the last bees of the season.
The late fall babies will be future queens and drones. The young drones from other hives will mate with new queens and these fertile bees will leave the hive to hibernate and start colonies of their own in the spring.
Unlike the honeybee, the bumblebee’s story is a sadder tale. As the temperature begins to drop, the rest of the bumblebee colony will die off, leaving the young, lone queens to spend the winter underground with an abdomen full of fertilized eggs.
She fills up on honey and nectar to sustain her through the coming months and she spends the winter alone, with the promise of a new colony residing completely within this single important bee.
In late fall, the new queen finds a patch of well drained soil and digs down about 4 inches. This spot is usually on a north facing area, as the more direct southern sun may warm the soil too much and bring her out of hibernation dangerously too early.
In hibernation the queen is protected from cold, starvation, and most predators. Her body is able to take a good long rest before her busiest time in the spring.
When the weather warms, the lone queens find a good nesting spot and begin laying her first fertile eggs that she has stored all winter.
Unlike the honeybee queen who has servants to dote on her every need, the bumblebee queen is a salt-of-the-earth kind of girl. She raises the first generation of bees alone. She cares for the young colony until her first batch of worker bees are able to contribute to the hive.
The bumblebee queen not only lays her eggs, but she also broods them. Just as a bird will sit on her eggs to keep them warm, a bumble does the same."
The Seasonal Bumblebee, Jennifer Sartell
keepingbackyardbees.com
For the Record,
This day came in dark and chilly with cloudy skies. The was a bit of late afternoon sun, but not enough to warm things up.
I retired from public school teaching after happily spending twenty eight years playing in Kindergarten. Now I fill my days watching cat antics, taking endless...
