Bombus campestris (Panzer)
Family: Apidae

This is a cuckoo bumblebee which takes over a nest of another bumblebee. The species has been assessed as vulnerable in Ireland.

In brief

• A cuckoo bumblebee that takes over the nest of another bumblebee species
• The bees have a thicker cuticle which helps protect them if they are attacked
• Assessed as vulnerable on the red list of Irish bees
• Appears to have declined and not recorded since 1997

Species description
There are subtle differences between cuckoo bumblebees and the true bumblebees and recognizing them in the field is possible with experience. In general the coat on a cuckoo bumblebee is thinner than on a true bumblebee and the shiny body surface is often visible. The wings typically have a slight brown tint. This species is black with two dull yellow bands on the thorax. The abdomen is black with a brown-yellow tail.

Life cycle
Bees are insects which construct nests which they provision with honey and nectar. They are some of the most fascinating of insects and, because of their role in pollination, one of the most important. The best known bees are the social species – honey and bumblebees – but most are non-social, solitary species. Bumblebees are amongst the most familiar of Irish insects. Nests of bumblebees are started each year by an overwintered queen. She will have mated in the previous year. The new queen will choose a nest site and build and provision a few cells from which hatch the first generation of workers. From them on the queen stays in the nest and is cared for by the workers who maintain and raise the brood and provision and maintain the nest. Workers are reared first, but then in summer males and new queens are produced. Once these leave the nest the colony breaks up and the workers and old queen die. This is the life cycle of the true bumblebees but there are six cuckoo species bumblebees in Ireland which do not construct their own nest. Instead these bees take over an active nest of another species and use the workers of the host to rear its own brood of queens and males. There is no worker caste in these so-called cuckoo bumblebees.
Bombus campestris is a nest parasite of a number of bumblebees including the common Bombus pascuorum

Similar species
Bumblebees and the cuckoo species are best told by the pattern of the dark and light bands. One of the best ways of telling a cuckoo bee is by behavior as they tend to be slower and less active than true bumblebees.

How to see this species
Bumblebees are amongst the most familiar of Irish insects and a welcome visitor to our gardens and parks. Their hairy body, often colourful appearance and their busy and unthreatening behaviour make them appealing to the general public. Only a few species are generally distributed, the less common species like this are only found in the wider countryside. As they have no worker caste, cuckoo bumblebees are naturally less numerous than true bumblebees. The best time to see them is in late summer when the males and new generation of queens are on the wing.

Current status
The most recent records of this species are from south Armagh in 1997 and Fermanagh in 1987. There are old records from sites across the east of N. Ireland. The host species B. pascuorum occurs throughout Northern Ireland.

Why is this species a priority in Northern Ireland?
This is declining species throughout its Irish range. The species was assessed as Vulnerable on the Irish red list.

Threats/Causes of decline
The threats and causes of the decline of this bee will be linked to those of its host species. Declines in its population will inevitably affect this species which cannot survive without it. Bombus pascuorum is apparently still a common and widespread species, so the decline in this species may be an early warning of a decline in the host.

Conservation of this species

Current action

• None

Proposed objectives/actions

• Survey suitable sites to locate extant populations and, if any are found, ensure the population is maintained
• maintain suitable habitat for the host species B. pascuorum

What you can do
Bumblebees are amongst the most familiar of Irish insects and a welcome visitor to our gardens and parks. Their hairy body, often colourful appearance and their busy and unthreatening behaviour make them appealing to the general public. Only a few species are generally distributed, the less common species like this are only found in the wider countryside. As they have no worker caste, cuckoo bumblebees are naturally less numerous than true bumblebees. The best time to see them is in late summer when the males and new generation of queens are on the wing.

Further information

Links
National Biodiversity Data Centre

Bees, Wasps and Ants Recording Society

Photographs of Wild bees and wasps

Literature
Baldock, D. (2008). The Bees of Surrey. Surrey Wildlife Trust, Woking.

This is a good illustrated account of the bees of Surrey, which includes most of the Irish bees
Fitzpatrick Ú., Murray T.E., Byrne A., Paxton R.J. and Brown M.J.F. (2006). Regional Red List of Irish Bees, Report to National Parks and Wildlife Service (Ireland) and Environment and Heritage Service (N. Ireland).

Text written by:
Brian Nelson

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