Bumblebees are a familiar sight in gardens and natural spaces, recognized by their fuzzy bodies and distinctive buzzing. These social insects build nests to raise their young and store food, but their nesting habits and structures differ significantly from the more commonly known honeybee hives. Understanding what a bumblebee nest looks like involves exploring where they choose to build, their external appearance, and the unique internal organization of their colonies.
Where Bumble Bees Build Their Nests
Bumblebees seek out existing, sheltered cavities for their nests rather than constructing them. Many species prefer to establish their homes underground, often utilizing abandoned rodent burrows, compost piles, or spaces beneath sheds. These subterranean locations offer insulation and protection from the elements. Other bumblebee species construct nests on the ground’s surface, finding suitable spots within dense grass or mossy vegetation.
Some bumblebees will also nest in above-ground locations, adapting to various natural and human-made structures. These can include bird boxes, wall cavities, roof spaces, or even hollows within trees. Regardless of location, bumblebee queens select dry, enclosed spaces that provide insulation and shade, helping to regulate nest temperature.
The External Appearance of a Bumble Bee Nest
From the outside, a bumblebee nest is often inconspicuous, blending seamlessly with its surroundings and making it challenging to spot. Instead, the nest’s visible characteristics involve materials like moss, dried grass, leaves, or animal fur, serving for insulation and concealment. The external shape of a bumblebee nest is irregular and may appear as a mounded clump of debris. The size of the visible portion can vary depending on the species and the colony’s age, with well-established nests potentially reaching the size of a small football. Often, a nest’s presence is detected by observing bees entering and exiting a spot, rather than by its distinct visual form.
Inside a Bumble Bee Nest: Structure and Contents
Bumblebees construct irregularly shaped wax cells, clustered together. These cells serve different purposes. Some wax cells function as brood cells, where the queen lays her eggs. Larvae develop within these cells, feeding on pollen provided by the adult bees before spinning silk cocoons to pupate.
Other wax structures are created as wax pots, which are used for storing nectar and pollen gathered by the foraging workers. Nectar stored in these pots is more fluid and less processed than honeybee honey, as bumblebees do not dehydrate it for long-term storage. The queen maintains nest temperature (25°C-32°C) by shivering flight muscles to generate heat for the developing brood.
How Bumble Bee Nests Differ from Other Bee Hives
Bumblebee nests differ significantly from other bee hives, particularly honeybees. Honeybee colonies are larger, housing tens of thousands, whereas bumblebee nests contain far fewer bees, ranging from 50 to 400 individuals, though some can reach up to 1,700. This difference in colony size influences their nesting strategies.
Internally, bumblebee nests lack the precise, hexagonal wax combs characteristic of honeybee hives. Instead, bumblebees construct irregularly shaped wax cells and pots for brood and food storage. Furthermore, bumblebees produce and store only small quantities of nectar and pollen for immediate consumption by the colony, unlike honeybees, which produce large reserves of honey for overwintering.
Bumblebee nests are annual, lasting a single season, with only new queens surviving to hibernate and start new colonies the following spring. Honeybee hives, by contrast, are perennial, with the entire colony surviving through the winter. Bumblebees nest in existing cavities, often underground, while honeybees build elaborate hives in sheltered, above-ground locations.