Bombus lantschouensis

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Bombus lantschouensis
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Apidae
Genus: Bombus
Species:
B. lantschouensis
Binomial name
Bombus lantschouensis
(Vogt, 1908)

Bombus lantschouensis is one of many bumblebee species native to China. Like all bumblebee species, they are characterized by their round bodies that are larger than honeybees. They have diverse color patterns. [1] but are known for their eye-catching black and yellow coloring. They are also known for their furry-like appearance due to their body being covered in soft hair which are long branched setae. This hair is referred to as pile. [2]

While many bumblebee species in North America are well documented and accessible through various lists, few resources describe the species found in China. This may be because while China hosts an incredible species diversity of bumblebees, with over half of the world's species being located within the country, it also has the least well-known described bumblebee diversity. [3] As of 2020, there are approximately 250 known species of bumblebee in the world, with about 125 species being documented in China. [1]

Distribution

Bombus lantschouensis is widely distributed within North China, particularly along the dry region of the southern edge of the Neimenggu plateau. [4] It is especially abundant at medium elevations of the Helanshan mountains, the Liupanshan mountains, and the Luoshan mountains in Ningxia. [4]

Taxonomy

Like all bumblebee species, Bombus lantschouensis belongs to the genus Bombus, which is classified in the tribe Bombini of the subfamily Apinae of the family Apidae. [1] This family is found within the third largest order within the class Insecta, known as Hymenoptera. This order encompasses bees, wasps, sawflies, and ants.

While in the early twentieth century, morphological characteristics were used to classify species within the genus Bombus, their highly variable color patterns and presence of convergent evolution in their morphology make it difficult to accurately identify them using only physical traits. [5] However, the development of molecular techniques in species identification, specifically using molecular markers, has become an invaluable tool in the phylogenetic analysis and placement of bumblebee species. [1]

Behavior

Social behavior in colonies

Bombus lantschouensis are social insects with annual colony cycles, with their queens undergoing several physiological and developmental changes as they progress through their life cycle. [6] These complex societies formed by these bumblebees are characteristic of eusocial insects, which is an extreme form of social behavior characterized by the presence of several generations in a colony simultaneously, and a defined division of labor with the queen reproducing and the workers seldom reproducing. [7] Queen bumblebees will first undergo a solitary phase where they take care of the first-generation brood, after this phase there is a cooperative eusocial phase where this division of labor begins. [8] Most bumblebee species only have one queen per colony and this queen is often monandrous, meaning she will only mate once. [8]

Pollination and behavior

Much like other bee species, Bombus lantschouensis acts as an important pollinator for many flowering plants. It benefits by collecting nectar from plants to use as food, and the pollen itself provides protein, lipids, and other vitamins making it the most essential nutrient source for them. [9] Pollen-foraging behavior of bees not only affects the reproductive success of their colony but also has a great impact on the fertilization success of the flowers they come into contact with. [9]

Bumblebee pollination plays an important role in protected tomato cultivation in China, as they use a form of "buzz pollination" characterized by their ability to contract their flight muscles and vibrate tomato anthers to release pollen gains. [10]

Reproduction and life cycles

The life cycle of B. lantschouensis is much like other bumblebee species where they have an annual eusocial life cycle [6] and the development of B. lantschouensis colonies is highly dependent on ovary activation in the queen. [11] There is first a solitary phase where the queens will emerge from hibernation in spring where they then forage and find an appropriate nesting location to lay their eggs and begin the initiation of a new colony. [6] Once these eggs emerge and the worker population grows, virgin queens and male drones are produced towards the end of the colony cycle in the late summer. [6] In many species, these young bumblebee queens will mate with only one male and then hibernate before producing the next generation. [6] This resting state during the winter that the queens enter is known as diapause, and they remain in this state until the weather warms again, [2] the male drones that the queens mate with do not survive through winter, and the queens will store sperm from mating with these male drones in a storage chamber called the spermatheca. [2]

Agriculture uses

Bumblebees are some of the most efficient pollinators of wild plants and crops worldwide and since the 1980s they have been used commercially to pollinate greenhouse crops, as a result of this artificial bumblebee rearing has become immensely important to the agriculture industry. [11] Bombus lantschouensis specifically is one of the most important pollinators in North China [4] and has been selected for the pollination of many greenhouse crops in China due to its efficiency as a pollinator and its ability to increase pollen deposition significantly. [12] Due to its excellent potential for artificial reproduction, this species has been selected to replace the imported European bumblebee B. terrestris which was previously used for commercial pollination in China. [13] There have been recent findings that suggest that different native populations of bumblebees in China have different types of adaptations to coldness, which provides more insight into what bumblebees may be better suited for certain agricultural pollination in various regions of China. [14]

Threats

Current and future concerns

In recent years, many bumblebee species have been noted as being in a state of steady decline, with particular concerns being focused on Europe and North America. [15] Even more concerning, several bumblebee species in central mainland China and northeastern Asia, including B. lantschouensis, have been predicted to become critically endangered or threatened due to their vulnerability to ongoing land use and climate change. [16]

Conservation efforts

There are various extensive conservation efforts currently in effect for bumblebees worldwide. Some species remain quite common, while others are quite rare and have declined at a much quicker rate. [17] It has been argued that conservation efforts should focus on delaying cutting grasslands until late September, thereby increasing foraging availability in the late season. [17] As well as reducing pesticides and fertilizers while ensuring that suitable habitats are connected to facilitate the movement and dispersal of different species to new areas is key in supporting existing and future bumblebee populations. [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bee</span> Clade of insects

Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea. They are currently considered a clade, called Anthophila. There are over 20,000 known species of bees in seven recognized biological families. Some species – including honey bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees – live socially in colonies while most species (>90%) – including mason bees, carpenter bees, leafcutter bees, and sweat bees – are solitary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bumblebee</span> Genus of insect

A bumblebee is any of over 250 species in the genus Bombus, part of Apidae, one of the bee families. This genus is the only extant group in the tribe Bombini, though a few extinct related genera are known from fossils. They are found primarily in higher altitudes or latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere, although they are also found in South America, where a few lowland tropical species have been identified. European bumblebees have also been introduced to New Zealand and Tasmania. Female bumblebees can sting repeatedly, but generally ignore humans and other animals.

<i>Bombus terrestris</i> Species of bee

Bombus terrestris, the buff-tailed bumblebee or large earth bumblebee, is one of the most numerous bumblebee species in Europe. It is one of the main species used in greenhouse pollination, and so can be found in many countries and areas where it is not native, such as Tasmania. Moreover, it is a eusocial insect with an overlap of generations, a division of labour, and cooperative brood care. The queen is monogamous which means she mates with only one male. B. terrestris workers learn flower colours and forage efficiently.

<i>Bombus ternarius</i> Species of insect

Bombus ternarius, commonly known as the orange-belted bumblebee or tricolored bumblebee, is a yellow, orange and black bumblebee. It is a ground-nesting social insect whose colony cycle lasts only one season, common throughout the northeastern United States and much of Canada. The orange-belted bumblebee forages on Rubus, goldenrods, Vaccinium, and milkweeds found throughout the colony's range. Like many other members of the genus, Bombus ternarius exhibits complex social structure with a reproductive queen caste and a multitude of sister workers with labor such as foraging, nursing, and nest maintenance divided among the subordinates.

<i>Bombus hypnorum</i> Species of bee

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 Great Britain. These bumblebees prefer habitats that others do not, allowing them to pollinate flowers in areas that many other species do not get to.

<i>Bombus lapidarius</i> Species of bee

Bombus lapidarius is a species of bumblebee in the subgenus Melanobombus. Commonly known as the red-tailed bumblebee, B. lapidarius can be found throughout much of Central Europe. Known for its distinctive black and red body, this social bee is important in pollination.

<i>Bombus breviceps</i> Species of bee

Bombus breviceps is a species of bumblebee.

Two-spotted bumble bee Species of bee

The two-spotted bumble bee is a species of social bumble bee found in the eastern half of the United States and the adjacent south-eastern part of Canada. In older literature this bee is often referred to as Bremus bimaculatus, Bremus being a synonym for Bombus. The bee's common name comes from the two yellow spots on its abdomen. Unlike many of the other species of bee in the genus Bombus,B. bimaculatus is not on the decline, but instead is very stable. They are abundant pollinators that forage at a variety of plants.

<i>Bombus vosnesenskii</i> Species of bee

Bombus vosnesenskii, the yellow-faced bumblebee, is a species of bumblebee native to the west coast of North America, where it is distributed from British Columbia to Baja California. It is the most abundant species of bee in this range, and can be found in both urban and agricultural areas. Additionally, B. vosnesenskii is utilized as an important pollinator in commercial agriculture, especially for greenhouse tomatoes. Though the species is not currently experiencing population decline, urbanization has affected its nesting densities, and early emergence of the B. vosnesenskii has been implicated in the increasing lack of bee diversity on the West coast.

<i>Bombus occidentalis</i> Species of bee

Bombus occidentalis, the western bumblebee, is one of around 30 bumblebee species present in the western United States and western Canada. A recent review of all of its close relatives worldwide appears to have confirmed its status as a separate species.

<i>Bombus fervidus</i> Species of bee

Bombus fervidus, the golden northern bumble bee or yellow bumblebee, is a species of bumblebee native to North America. It has a yellow-colored abdomen and thorax. Its range includes the North American continent, excluding much of the southern United States, Alaska, and the northern parts of Canada. It is common in cities and farmland, with populations concentrated in the Northeastern part of the United States. It is similar in color and range to its sibling species, Bombus californicus, though sometimes also confused with the American bumblebee or black and gold bumblebee. It has complex behavioral traits, which includes a coordinated nest defense to ward off predators. B. fervidus is an important pollinator, so recent population decline is a particular concern.

<i>Bombus impatiens</i> Species of insect

Bombus impatiens, the common eastern bumble bee, is the most commonly encountered bumblebee across much of eastern North America. They can be found in the Eastern temperate forest region of the eastern United States, southern Canada, and the eastern Great Plains. Because of their great adaptability, they can live in country, suburbs, and even urban cities. This adaptability makes them a great pollinator species, leading to an increase in their commercial use by the greenhouse industry. This increase consequently led to their farther spread outside their previous distribution range. They are considered one of the most important species of pollinator bees in North America.

<i>Bombus ruderatus</i> Species of bee

Bombus ruderatus, the large garden bumblebee or ruderal bumblebee, is a species of long-tongued bumblebee found in Europe and in some parts of northern Africa. This species is the largest bumblebee in Britain and it uses its long face and tongue to pollinate hard-to-reach tubed flowers. Bumblebees are key pollinators in many agricultural ecosystems, which has led to B. ruderatus and other bumblebees being commercially bred and introduced into non-native countries, specifically New Zealand and Chile. Since its introduction in Chile, B. ruderatus has spread into Argentina as well. Population numbers have been declining and it has been placed on the Biodiversity Action Plan to help counteract these declines.

<i>Bombus frigidus</i> Species of bee

Bombus frigidus, the frigid bumblebee, is a rare species of bumblebee largely found in Canada and parts of the United States.

<i>Bombus affinis</i> Species of bee

Bombus affinis, commonly known as the rusty patched bumble bee, is a species of bumblebee endemic to North America. Its historical range in North America has been throughout the east and upper Midwest of the United States, north to Ontario, Canada, where it is considered a "species at risk", east to Quebec, south to Georgia, and west to the Dakotas. Its numbers have declined in 87% of its historical habitat range. On January 10, 2017, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service placed B. affinis on the list of endangered species, making the rusty patched bumblebee the first bee to be added to the list in the continental United States.

<i>Bombus terricola</i> Species of bee

Bombus terricola, the yellow-banded bumblebee, is a species of bee in the genus Bombus. It is native to southern Canada and the east and midwest of the United States. It possesses complex behavioral traits, such as the ability to adapt to a queenless nest, choose which flower to visit, and regulate its temperature to fly during cold weather. It was at one time a common species, but has declined in numbers since the late 1990s, likely due to urban development and parasite infection. It is a good pollinator of wild flowers and crops such as alfalfa, potatoes, raspberries, and cranberries.

<i>Bombus ignitus</i> Species of bee

Bombus ignitus is a species of bumblebee in the family Apidae. It is mainly distributed in Eastern Asia, commonly found in China, Japan and Korea. It is used in China and Japan commercially as a pollinator. B. ignitus is a eusocial insect with a queen that is monandrous: mating with only one male in the late summer before hibernating until the following spring. It builds its nest out of a mass of pollen and lays its eggs after completion. Due to numerous conflicts between queens and fertile workers, some surviving queens are badly injured, described by some as living corpses.

<i>Bombus morio</i> Species of insect

Bombus morio is one of the few bumblebee species found in South America. These bees reside mainly in the forests of Brazil, nesting on the surface of the ground. They are one of the biggest species of bumblebee and are important pollinators. They are one of the few species of bees that exhibit buzz pollination to collect pollen from the flowers.

<i>Bombus vancouverensis</i> Species of bee

Bombus vancouverensis is a common species of eusocial bumblebee of the subgenus Pyrobombus. B. vancouverensis inhabits mountainous regions of western North America, where it has long been considered as a synonym of Bombus bifarius, and essentially all of the literature on bifarius refers instead to vancouverensis. B. vancouverensis has been identified as one of the two species of bumblebee observed to use pheromones in kin recognition. The other is the frigid bumblebee, Bombus frigidus.

Bombus hypocrita, also known as the short-tongued bumblebee, is a Japanese bumblebee commonly used in commercial pollination. These short-tongued bumblebees have a proboscis about 7-9mm long, which is folded under their head when flying. Bumblebees are a small fuzzy insect with yellow and black banding along their abdomen. They are round and covered in pile, the hair-like structures that give them their distinct fuzzy appearance.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Wang, L.; Liu, S.; Tang, Y.; Chen, Y.; Wu, J.; Li, J. (2020). "Using the combined gene approach and multiple analytical methods to improve the phylogeny and classification of Bombus (Hymenoptera, Apidae) in China". ZooKeys (1007): 1. Bibcode:2020ZooK.1007....1W. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.1007.34105 . PMID   33505180.
  2. 1 2 3 Schmidt, A. (2021). "Bumblebee Fact Sheet | Blog | Nature | PBS". Nature. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  3. ↑ Williams, P.; Huang, J.; An, J. (2017). "Bear wasps of the Middle Kingdom: a decade of discovering China's bumblebees". Antenna. 41.
  4. 1 2 3 An, J.; Huang, J.; Shao, Y.; Zhang, S.; Wang, B.; Liu, X.; Wu, J.; Williams, P. (2014). "The bumblebees of North China (Apidae, Bombus)". Zootaxa. 3830 (1): 1–89. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3830.1.1. PMID   25081273.
  5. ↑ Cameron, S. A.; Hines, H. M.; Williams, P. H. (2006). "Molecular phylogeny of the bumble bee subgenus Pyrobombus (Hymenoptera:Apidae:Bombus) with insights into gene utility for lower-level analysis". Invertebrate Systematics. 20 (3): 289. doi:10.1071/IS05028.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Wang, L.; Wu, J.; Li, K.; Sadd, B. M.; Guo, Y.; Zhuang, D.; Zhang, Z.; Chen, Y.; Evans, J. D.; Guo, J.; Zhang, Z.; Li, J. (2019). "Dynamic Changes of Gut Microbial Communities of Bumble Bee Queens through Important Life Stages". mSystems. 4 (6). doi:10.1128/mSystems.00631-19.
  7. ↑ "Social Behavior, BeeSpotter, University of Illinois". beespotter.org.
  8. 1 2 Amsalem, E.; Grozinger, C. M.; Padilla, M.; Hefetz, A. (2015), "The Physiological and Genomic Bases of Bumble Bee Social Behaviour", Advances in Insect Physiology, Elsevier
  9. 1 2 Zhang, H.; Zhou, Z.; An, J. (2019). "Pollen Release Dynamics and Daily Patterns of Pollen-Collecting Activity of Honeybee Apis mellifera and Bumblebee Bombus lantschouensis in Solar Greenhouse". Insects. 10 (7): 216. doi: 10.3390/insects10070216 . PMC   6681390 . PMID   31336589.
  10. ↑ Zhang, H.; Shan, S.; Gu, S.; Huang, X.; Li, Z.; Khashaveh, A.; Zhang, Y. (2020). "Prior Experience with Food Reward Influences the Behavioral Responses of the Honeybee Apis mellifera and the Bumblebee Bombus lantschouensis to Tomato Floral Scent". Insects. 11 (12): 884. doi: 10.3390/insects11120884 . PMC   7764895 . PMID   33327411.
  11. 1 2 Du, L.; Wang, M.; Li, J.; He, S.; Huang, J.; Wu, J. (2019). "Characterization of a Vitellogenin Receptor in the Bumblebee, Bombus lantschouensis (Hymenoptera, Apidae)". Insects. 10 (12): 445. doi: 10.3390/insects10120445 . PMC   6955983 . PMID   31842304.
  12. ↑ Dong, J.; Han, L.; Wang, Y.; Huang, J.; Wu, J. (2017). "Transcript expression bias of phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein gene in bumblebee, Bombus lantschouensis (Hymenoptera: Apidae)". Gene. 627: 290–297. doi:10.1016/j.gene.2017.06.041. PMID   28647560.
  13. ↑ Dong, J.; Wu, J.; Han, L.; Huang, J.; Wang, D. (2020). "Novel Characteristics of Immune Responsive Protein IRP30 in the Bumble Bee Bombus lantschouensis (Hymenoptera: Apidae)". Journal of Insect Science. 20 (2). doi:10.1093/jisesa/ieaa017. PMC   7136008 . PMID   32219449.
  14. ↑ Qin, J.; Liu, F.; Wu, J.; He, S.; Imran, M.; Lou, W.; Li-Byarlay, H.; Luo, S. (2021). "The Molecular Characterization and Gene Expressions of Trehalase in Bumblebee, Bombus lantschouensis (Hymenoptera: Apidae)". Sociobiology. 68 (4): e5443. doi:10.13102/sociobiology.v68i4.5443.
  15. ↑ Cameron, S. A.; Lozier, J. D.; Strange, J. P.; Koch, J. B.; Cordes, N.; Solter, L. F.; Griswold, T. L. (2011). "Patterns of widespread decline in North American bumble bees". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 108 (2): 662–667. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1014743108 . PMC   3021065 . PMID   21199943.
  16. ↑ Wang, L.; Wu, J.; Li, K.; Sadd, B. M.; Guo, Y.; Zhuang, D.; Zhang, Z.; Chen, Y.; Evans, J. D.; Guo, J.; Zhang, Z.; Li, J. (2019). "Dynamic Changes of Gut Microbial Communities of Bumble Bee Queens through Important Life Stages". mSystems. 4 (6). doi:10.1128/mSystems.00631-19.
  17. 1 2 3 Phelan, N.; Suddaby, D.; Stanley, D. A. (2021). "Investigating the ecology of the Great Yellow Bumblebee (Bombus distinguendus) within the wider bumblebee community in North-West Ireland". Journal of Insect Conservation. 25 (2): 297–310. doi:10.1007/s10841-021-00299-7.
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