Bombus vestalis: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
m Gigemag76 moved page Bombus vestalis to Vestal cuckoo bumblebee: common name |
mNo edit summary |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{italic title}} |
|||
{{Taxobox |
{{Taxobox |
||
| name = Vestal cuckoo bumblebee |
| name = Vestal cuckoo bumblebee |
||
| Line 14: | Line 13: | ||
| binomial_authority = Geoffroy, 1785<ref name=itis>[http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=715039 ITIS Report]</ref> |
| binomial_authority = Geoffroy, 1785<ref name=itis>[http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=715039 ITIS Report]</ref> |
||
}} |
}} |
||
The ''' |
The '''vestal cuckoo bumblebee''' (''Bombus vestalis'') is a species of [[cuckoo bumblebee]] that lives in most of Europe, including North Africa and western Asia.<ref name="ATH">{{cite web |url=http://zoologie.umh.ac.be/hymenoptera/pagetaxon.asp?tx_id=3061 |title=''Bombus (Psithyrus) vestalis'' (Fourcroy, 1785) |author=Pierre Rasmont |accessdate=5 January 2013 |publisher=Université de Mons}}</ref> Its usual host is ''[[Bombus terrestris]]'' (the buff-tailed bumblebee). |
||
''Bombus vestalis''' usual host is ''[[Bombus terrestris]]'' (the buff-tailed bumblebee). |
|||
== Description == |
== Description == |
||
The queen is a large bumblebee with a length up to {{convert|21|mm}} and a wingspan of {{convert|37|mm}};<ref name="TBBB">{{cite book |last=Benton |first=Ted |title=Bumblebees |publisher=HarperCollins Publishers |location=London, UK |year=2006 |pages=403–406 |chapter=Chapter 9: The British Species |isbn=0007174519}}</ref> the male is considerably smaller ({{convert|16|mm}}). The bumblebee is predomninantly black, with an orange collar. The third [[tergite]] |
The queen is a large bumblebee with a length up to {{convert|21|mm|abbr=on}} and a wingspan of {{convert|37|mm|abbr=on}};<ref name="TBBB">{{cite book |last=Benton |first=Ted |title=Bumblebees |publisher=HarperCollins Publishers |location=London, UK |year=2006 |pages=403–406 |chapter=Chapter 9: The British Species |isbn=0007174519}}</ref> the male is considerably smaller ({{convert|16|mm|abbr=on}}). The bumblebee is predomninantly black, with an orange collar. The third [[tergite]] has a border of yellow hairs, and the hairs on the fifth tergite are mostly white. The males are similar to the females, but smaller and with longer antennae.<ref name="BBORG">{{cite web |url=http://www.bumblebee.org/cuckoo.htm |title=Cuckoo bumblebees |accessdate=5 January 2013 |publisher=Bumblebee.org}}</ref> |
||
It is similar in appearance to another cuckoo bumblebee |
It is similar in appearance to another cuckoo bumblebee, ''[[Bombus bohemicus]]'', but is distinguishable by either the length of the antennal segments or dissection and comparison of the genitalia. In ''B. vestalis'', the fifth antennal segment will be the same length as the third and fourth together.<ref>[http://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/vestal-cuckoo-bumblebee Vestal Cuckoo Bumblebee - ''Bombus vestalis''] NatureSpot</ref> |
||
== Distribution == |
== Distribution == |
||
The bumblebee is common from [[North Africa]] in the south to southern [[Sweden]] in the north, and from [[United Kingdom|Britain]] in the west to northern [[Iran]] in the east.<ref name="ATH" /> It is common throughout [[England]] and [[Wales]] but has only |
The bumblebee is common from [[North Africa]] in the south to southern [[Sweden]] in the north, and from [[United Kingdom|Britain]] in the west to northern [[Iran]] in the east.<ref name="ATH" /> It is common throughout [[England]] and [[Wales]], but has only been sighted in [[Scotland]] since 2009.<ref name="BBORG" /> Using data from the National Biodiversity Network gateway, ''B. vestalis'' apparently is most prominent in south-east England.<ref>[http://data.nbn.org.uk/gridMap/gridMap.jsp?allDs=1&srchSpKey=NHMSYS0000875499 Grid map of records for ''Bombus (Psithyrus) vestalis''] National Biodiversity Network</ref> |
||
== Ecology == |
== Ecology == |
||
'' |
''B. vestalis'' is a cuckoo bumblebee; it does not construct any nest of its own, but usurps the nest of ''[[Bombus terrestris]]'', kills the host queen, and lets the host workers raise its offspring.<ref name="TBBB" /> The male bumblebees often congregate in gardens in the suburbs.<ref name="NHM">{{cite web |url=http://www.nhm.ac.uk/research-curation/research/projects/bombus/_key_colour_british/ck_cuckoos.html |title=Bombus |year=2013 |accessdate=5 January 2013 |publisher=Natural History Museum, London, UK}}</ref> |
||
The queen emerges early in the spring; the males later, late May to early June. |
The queen emerges early in the spring; the males emerge later, in late May to early June. Its food sources are flowering plants such as [[clover]] (males especially often visit [[white clover]]), [[tufted vetch]], [[knapweed]], and others). In the spring, the emerging queens frequently fly to flowers such as [[deadnettles]], [[sallow]]s, [[blackthorns]], and [[dandelions]].<ref name="TBBB" /> |
||
==See also== |
==See also== |
||
| ⚫ | |||
*[[Bumblebee]] |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
*** Southern plains bumblebee, ''[[Bombus fraternus]]'' |
|||
*** New garden bumblebee, ''[[Bombus hypnorum]]'' |
|||
*** Orange-belted Bumblebee, ''[[Bombus ternarius]]'' |
|||
*** Early bumblebee, ''[[Early bumblebee|Bombus pratorum]]'' |
|||
*** Buff-tailed bumblebee or large earth bumblebee, ''[[Bombus terrestris]]'' |
|||
*[[Eusociality]] |
*[[Eusociality]] |
||
Revision as of 23:22, 4 July 2014
| Vestal cuckoo bumblebee | |
|---|---|
| |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Order: | |
| Family: | |
| Genus: | |
| Subgenus: | |
| Species: | B. vestalis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Bombus vestalis Geoffroy, 1785[1]
| |
The vestal cuckoo bumblebee (Bombus vestalis) is a species of cuckoo bumblebee that lives in most of Europe, including North Africa and western Asia.[2] Its usual host is Bombus terrestris (the buff-tailed bumblebee).
Description
The queen is a large bumblebee with a length up to 21 mm (0.83 in) and a wingspan of 37 mm (1.5 in);[3] the male is considerably smaller (16 mm (0.63 in)). The bumblebee is predomninantly black, with an orange collar. The third tergite has a border of yellow hairs, and the hairs on the fifth tergite are mostly white. The males are similar to the females, but smaller and with longer antennae.[4]
It is similar in appearance to another cuckoo bumblebee, Bombus bohemicus, but is distinguishable by either the length of the antennal segments or dissection and comparison of the genitalia. In B. vestalis, the fifth antennal segment will be the same length as the third and fourth together.[5]
Distribution
The bumblebee is common from North Africa in the south to southern Sweden in the north, and from Britain in the west to northern Iran in the east.[2] It is common throughout England and Wales, but has only been sighted in Scotland since 2009.[4] Using data from the National Biodiversity Network gateway, B. vestalis apparently is most prominent in south-east England.[6]
Ecology
B. vestalis is a cuckoo bumblebee; it does not construct any nest of its own, but usurps the nest of Bombus terrestris, kills the host queen, and lets the host workers raise its offspring.[3] The male bumblebees often congregate in gardens in the suburbs.[7]
The queen emerges early in the spring; the males emerge later, in late May to early June. Its food sources are flowering plants such as clover (males especially often visit white clover), tufted vetch, knapweed, and others). In the spring, the emerging queens frequently fly to flowers such as deadnettles, sallows, blackthorns, and dandelions.[3]
See also
References
- ^ ITIS Report
- ^ a b Pierre Rasmont. "Bombus (Psithyrus) vestalis (Fourcroy, 1785)". Université de Mons. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
- ^ a b c Benton, Ted (2006). "Chapter 9: The British Species". Bumblebees. London, UK: HarperCollins Publishers. pp. 403–406. ISBN 0007174519.
- ^ a b "Cuckoo bumblebees". Bumblebee.org. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
- ^ Vestal Cuckoo Bumblebee - Bombus vestalis NatureSpot
- ^ Grid map of records for Bombus (Psithyrus) vestalis National Biodiversity Network
- ^ "Bombus". Natural History Museum, London, UK. 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2013.