Buff-tailed Bumblebee

Bombus terrestris

Common & widespread throughout Britain.

Flies from April-September.

The queen is between 20 and 22 mm long, males range from 14 to 16 mm, and workers from 11 to 17 mm.

Workers have white-ended abdomens, and look just like workers of the white-tailed bumblebee, B. lucorum, a close relative, apart from the yellowish bands of B. terrestris being darker in direct comparison.

The queens of B. terrestris have the namesake buff-white abdomen tip ("tail"); this area is white as in the workers in B. lucorum.

B. terrestris is unique compared to other bees in that their caste of workers exhibit a wide variation in worker size, with thorax sizes ranging from 2.3 to 6.9 mm in length and masses ranging from 68 to 754 mg.