two-spotted bumble bee

(Bombus bimaculatus)

Conservation Status
two-spotted bumble bee
Photo by Christa Rittberg
  IUCN Red List

LC - Least Concern

     
  NatureServe

N5 - Secure

SNR - Unranked

     
  Minnesota

not listed

     
           
           
 
Description
 
 

Two-spotted bumble bee is a common, small, colonial, ground-nesting bumble bee.

The female (worker) bee is 7 16 to long. The upper side of the thorax is black but is densely covered with short yellow hairs. There is a small, round spot in the middle that is , more or less bare and more or less fringed with short black hairs. At the base of each wing there is a shiny, black bare plate (tegula).

There are six abdominal segments. The first segment is densely covered with yellow hairs. Segment 2 has a broad yellow spot across the middle third at the leading (anterior) edge that extends nearly to the trailing (posterior) edge of the segment. It may be indented in the middle appearing as two connected spots or a rounded “W”. Segments 3 through 6 are entirely black and densely covered with short black hairs.

The hairs on the head are mostly black. There is a dense tuft of black hairs on the top of the head (vertex) and a dense tuft of yellow hairs on the back of the head. There are two large compound eyes, one on each side of the head; and three small simple eyes (ocelli) in a triangular pattern at the top of the head between the compound eyes. The middle ocellus is larger than the the two lateral ones. The top of the small (lateral) ocelli are on a virtual line (supraorbital line) with the top of the compound eyes. The area between the bottom margin of the compound eye and the base of the mandible, called the malar space, is relatively long. The antennae have 12 segments. The first antenna segment is slightly shorter than than the second and third combined. The tongue is very long.

The wings and legs are black.

The queen is similar to the worker but larger, to long.

The male (drone) is similar but has 7 abdominal segments and 13 antennae segments. The hairs on the back of the head are yellow, like the female, but those on the front of the head are mixed black and yellow. Abdominal segments 3 through 7 have variable amounts of yellow and black hairs. Segment 2 on some individuals is entirely yellow. Segments 4 and 5 are mostly yellow on some individuals. The compound eyes are not larger than those of the female.

 
     
 

Size

 
 

Queen: to

Male: ½ to 9 16

Worker: 7 16 to

 
     
 

Similar Species

 
 

Brown-belted bumble bee (Bombus griseocollis) yellow spot on abdominal segment 2 is U-shaped and extends less than half way to the posterior edge of the segment. The hairs on the back of the head of the female are black. The eyes on the male are much larger.

 
     
 
Habitat
 
 

Woodland habitats

 
     
 
Biology
 
 

Season

 
 

Very early spring to mid-summer; March to September

 
     
 

Behavior

 
 

Bumble bees will sting to protect themselves or their nest. The stinger is not barbed and the bee can sting multiple times.

 
     
 

Life Cycle

 
 

Overwintering queens emerge from hibernation in March. They nest mostly underground but sometimes above ground or in cavities in dead trees.

 
     
 

Larva Food

 
 

Larvae are fed both nectar for carbohydrates and pollen for protein.

 
     
 

Adult Food

 
 

Adults feed mostly on nectar but also on some pollen. The very long tongue allows it to feed on nectar of plants with long corolla tubes.

 
     
 
Distribution
 
 

Distribution Map

 

Sources

7, 27, 29, 30.

 
  6/19/2018      
         
 

Occurrence

 
 

Common in eastern North America

 
         
 
Taxonomy
 
 

Order

Hymenoptera (ants, bees, wasps, and sawflies)  
 

Suborder

Apocrita (narrow-waisted wasps, ants, and bees)  
 

Infraorder

Aculeata (ants, bees, and stinging wasps)  
 

Superfamily

Apoidea (bees and apoid wasps)  
  Epifamily Anthophila (bees)  
 

Family

Apidae (honey bees, bumble bees, and allies)  
 

Subfamily

Apinae (apine bees)  
 

Tribe

Bombini (bumble bees)  
 

Genus

Bombus (bumble bees)  
  Subgenus Pyrobombus  
       
 

Some authors separate bumble bees and orchid bees into the subfamily Bombinae. NCBI follows this classification. Most authors follow Michener (2007) and include those groups in the subfamily Apinae with the honey bees.

 
       
 

Synonyms

 
 

 

 
       
 

Common Names

 
 

two-spotted bumble bee

 
       

 

 

 

 

Glossary

Malar space

In Hymenoptera, the space, equivalent to the cheek, between the bottom of the compound eye and the base of the mandible.

 

Ocellus

Simple eye; an eye with a single lens. Plural: ocelli.

 

Tegula

A small, hardened, plate, scale, or flap-like structure that overlaps the base of the forewing of insects in the orders Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera, and Homoptera. Plural: tegulae.

 

Vertex

The upper surface of an insect’s head.

 

 

Minnesota Bumble Bee Identification Guide

The University of MN Bee Lab has a free field identification guide to Minnesota bumble bees. It is indispensable for amateur naturalists or anyone wanting to identify the bumble bee in their photo. Click on the image below to download the guide.

Guide to MN Bumble Bees

 

 
 
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Bobbi Johnson

 
    two-spotted bumble bee      
 

Christa Rittberg

 
    two-spotted bumble bee   two-spotted bumble bee  
           
 
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Gerry Garcia

 
  two spotted bumble bee 01
Published on Aug 5, 2019
 
   
 
About

two-spotted bumble bee (Bombus bimaculatus)

Lyndale Park, Minneapolis, MN

Video by Gerry Garcia

http://www.minnesotaseasons.com/Insects/two-spotted_bumble_bee.html

   
       
  two spotted bumble bee 02
Published on Aug 5, 2019
 
   
 
About

two-spotted bumble bee (Bombus bimaculatus)

Lyndale Park, Minneapolis, MN

Video by Gerry Garcia

http://www.minnesotaseasons.com/Insects/two-spotted_bumble_bee.html

   
       
       
 
Other Videos
 
  Two-spotted Bumble Bee (Apidae: Bombus bimaculatus) Queen
Carl Barrentine
 
   
 
About

Published on May 6, 2011

Hooray! Fertile Queen Bumble Bees finally emerged from their long, long, long winter's nap this week! Photographed at Grand Forks, North Dakota (06 May 2011). Thank you to 'robomantis' for identifying this specimen!

 
  Wild Two-Spotted Bumble Bee Nest (Bombus bimaculatus)
Victoria MacPhail
 
   
 
About

Published on Jul 27, 2016

Found in a meadow/old field area on an organic farm near London, Ontario on July 10, 2016.

 
  Bombus bimaculatus mating
robo mantis
 
   
 
About

Published on Jul 15, 2013

Bombus bimaculatus bumble bees mating early in the morning.

 
  Two-spotted Bumble Bee (Apidae: Bombus bimaculatus) on Blossom
Carl Barrentine
 
   
 
About

Published on Aug 13, 2010

Photographed at Grand Forks, North Dakota (13 August 2010).

 
  Bumble bee (Bombus bimaculatus) on Wild Senna (Senna hebecarpa)
Tom Wassmer
 
   
 
About

Tom Wassmer

det. Sam Droege (Thanks!)

 
       

 

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  Gerry Garcia
8/3/2019

Location: Lyndale Park, Minneapolis, MN

   
  Crystal Boyd
6/10 and 6/11/2013

Location: Uncas Dunes SNA

   
           
 
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Created 7/4/2017

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