What to look for: These bees have black bodies with orange tails. The queens and smaller males have a yellow stripe across their thorax and another across their abdomen. The females are a little larger than the males but have no stripe on their abdomen
Favourite plants: Fruiting trees, fruiting plants, and shrubs
Making a nest: Nest in colonies in natural holes and bird boxes
When active: Spring to summer
Where seen: Across the UK
Early Bumblebee
These bees are the smallest species of bumblebee in the UK. All have black bodies and orange tails, but the queens, males and all-female workers have obvious differences.
The queens and males have a yellow stripe across their thorax and another across their abdomen. The males are smaller than the queens and have yellow facial hair. Females are a little larger than the males but smaller than the queens and have no yellow stripe across their abdomen.
These bumblebees live in colonies underground, in natural holes or in bird boxes. Nest selection is all about location, and those with near fruiting trees, fruiting plants, and shrubs.
They can be seen across the UK from early spring to late summer.