| Bombus argillaceus | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Apidae |
| Genus: | Bombus |
| Subgenus: | Bombus (Megabombus) |
| Species: | B. argillaceus |
| Binomial name | |
| Bombus argillaceus | |
Bombus argillaceus is a bumblebee species of the subgenus Megabombus , distributed from south and south-eastern Europe to western Asia. [2]
A large bumblebee, the queen has a body length of 24 to 28 mm (0.94 to 1.10 in) with a long proboscis, a very oblong head [3] and dark wings. The males and workers are considerably smaller than the queen. The thorax is yellow with a broad, median, black band. The abdomen of the queen is completely black, while the males and workers have the first tergite (abdominal segment) and the centre of the second yellow, the middle part black and the tail white, except the last tergite, which is black. [4]
In Turkey, it lives in the mountains, usually at heights between 900 and 1,870 m (2,950 and 6,140 ft) above sea level. It has, however, been found as high as 2,855 m (9,367 ft). [4]
Its major food sources are flowering plants from the Boraginaceae (forget-me-not family), Asteraceae (aster family), Lamiaceae (mint family), and Fabaceae (pea family). [4]
B. argillaceus is found from the eastern Mediterranean to the Alps in France, Italy, Switzerland, and Austria, over Hungary north to Cluj in Romania. In the east, it reaches eastern Kazakhstan, and in the south and south-east the Balkans, Greece, [5] Cyprus, Turkey, the Caucasus, and northern Iran. [2]
The early bumblebee or early-nesting bumblebee is a small bumblebee with a wide distribution in most of Europe and parts of Asia. It is very commonly found in the UK and emerges to begin its colony cycle as soon as February which is earlier than most other species, hence its common name. There is even some evidence that the early bumblebee may be able to go through two colony cycles in a year. Like other bumblebees, Bombus pratorum lives in colonies with queen and worker castes. Bombus pratorum queens use aggressive behavior rather than pheromones to maintain dominance over the workers!
The tree bumblebee or new garden bumblebee is a species of bumblebee common in the European continent and parts of Asia. Since the start of the twenty-first century, it has spread to the United Kingdom and Iceland. These bumblebees prefer habitats that others do not, allowing them to pollinate flowers in areas that many other species do not get to.
Bombus barbutellus, or Barbut's cuckoo-bee, is a species of cuckoo bumblebee, widespread, if not especially common, in most of Europe.
Bombus vestalis, the vestal cuckoo bumblebee, is a species of cuckoo bumblebee that lives in most of Europe, as well as North Africa and western Asia. It is a brood parasite that takes over the nests of other bee species. Its primary host is Bombus terrestris. After its initial classification as Psithyrus vestalis, this bumblebee recently was reclassified into the genus Bombus, subgenus Psithyrus.
Bombus campestris is a very common cuckoo bumblebee found in most of Europe.
Bombus citrinus is a species of bumblebee known commonly as the lemon cuckoo bumblebee due to its lemon-yellow color. It is native to eastern North America.
Bombus rupestris is a species of cuckoo bumblebee present in most of Europe except Iceland. In the Balkans it is found in montane and alpine habitats northwards from Central Greece. It is also found in Turkey.
Bombus sylvestris, known as the forest cuckoo bumblebee or four-coloured cuckoo bee, is a species of cuckoo bumblebee, found in most of Europe and Russia. Its main hosts are Bombus pratorum, Bombus jonellus, and Bombus monticola. As a cuckoo bumblebee, Bombus sylvestris lays its eggs in another bumblebee's nest. This type of bee leaves their young to the workers of another nest for rearing, allowing cuckoo bumblebees to invest minimal energy and resources in their young while still keeping the survival of their young intact.
Bombus bohemicus, also known as the gypsy's cuckoo bumblebee, is a species of socially parasitic cuckoo bumblebee found in most of Europe with the exception of the southern Iberian Peninsula and Iceland. B. bohemicus practices inquilinism, or brood parasitism, of other bumblebee species. B. bohemicus is a generalist parasite, successfully invading several species from genus Bombus. The invading queen mimics the host nest's chemical signals, allowing her to assume a reproductively dominant role as well as manipulation of host worker fertility and behavior.
The broken-belted bumblebee or Ilfracombe bumblebee, Bombus soroeensis, is a species of bumblebee present in most of Europe and parts of Asia.
Bombus wurflenii is a species of bumblebee found in several parts of central and northern Europe to Turkey and the Crimea peninsula in the southeast.
Bombus monticola, the bilberry bumblebee, blaeberry bumblebee or mountain bumblebee, is a species of bumblebee found in Europe.
The heath humble-bee or small heath bumblebee, Bombus jonellus, is a species of bumblebee, widely distributed in Europe and northern Asia, as well as northern North America.
Bombus consobrinus is a species of bumblebee found in Hungary, northern Scandinavia, Kazakhstan, Russia, China, North and South Korea, and Japan.
Bombus lucorum, the white-tailed bumblebee, is a species of bumblebee, widespread and common throughout Europe. This name has been widely used for a range of nearly identical-looking or cryptic species of bumblebees. In 1983, Scholl and Obrecht even coined the term Bombus lucorum complex to explain the three taxa that cannot be easily differentiated from one another by their appearances. A recent review of all of these species worldwide has helped to clarify its distribution in Europe and northern Asia, almost to the Pacific. B. lucorum reaches the Barents Sea in the North. However, in southern Europe, although found in Greece it is an upland species with its distribution never quite reaching the Mediterranean.
Bombus ruderarius, commonly known as the red-shanked carder bee or red-shanked bumblebee, is a species of bumblebee found in Eurasia.
Bombus cullumanus, Cullum's bumblebee or Cullum's humble-bee. is a species of bumblebee found in Europe and Asia.
Bombus erzurumensis is a species of bumblebee found in Turkey and northern Iran.
The apple humble-bee or apple bumblebee is a species of bumblebee.