Stone-tailed bumblebee
(Bombus lapidarius)
What you will learn here
- Information on individual types of bumblebees
- You will receive a summary of information for the general public, schools, and breeders.
Date of last update: 08/12/2021
Contents
Colour scheme
Size
Head
Language
Photography
Mother
Female worker
Male
Video catalogue
Mother
Female worker
Male
Similar species
How to distinguish it from similar species
Life cycle
Larval feeding
Nesting site
Nest size
Visiting bumblebees
How to tell the difference between a bumblebee and a 'pačmelák' (which is often used colloquially to refer to any larger bee, including bumblebees, or sometimes more specifically to certain types of larger, fuzzy bees).
Information on breeding
Interesting facts
Photos and videos
Interesting links
Description
Czech Rock bumblebee
Flights: _Bombus lapidarius_
English Red-tailed bumblebee
German: Stone bee
Polish Stone bumblebee
Depiction
Stone-tail bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Colour scheme
Basic diagram (mother-queen and workers):
- Base colour Is black a lighter shade compared to the black of a bumblebee (B. terrestris)?
- Head black
- Chest black
- Bottom black, with a deep orange-red tip
Basic diagram (male):
- Head: black, with a brush of bright yellow hairs on the facial part
- Chest: black with a single light yellow transverse band behind the head.
- Bottom: black with a deep orange-red end
Supplement:
- The colouring of the mother and workers is similar
- Female workers sometimes do not have a saturedened red bottom, it can approach orange
- Female workers sometimes gradually lose their colours – they fade (with age)
- Some forms are black and quite saturated, sometimes with a hint of grey, with hardly distinguishable rows of grey stripes
Size
Type: large
Mother 20 – 24 millimetres
Female worker 12 – 16 mm
Male 14 – 16 mm
Source Hymenoptera of the Czech Republic I., Academia 2017
Head
Size short
Shape
- Mother and worker wedge shape when viewed from the front
- Male Oval
Language
- middle
- Mother tongue 12-14 mm
Photography
Mother
What's interesting about this mother is her birthmark on...
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) queen
Photo: O. Hercog 11/7/2021
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) queen
Photo: O. Hercog 11/7/2021
Female worker
In the following photographs, you can see typical worker forms. The colour of the tip of the abdomen and the shades of black vary. The degree of abrasion of the pubescence also varies, depending on age.
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – worker
Photo: O. Hercog 27/7/2021
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – worker
Photo: O. Hercog 7/2021
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) worker
Photo: O. Hercog 21/7/2021
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) worker
On this construction site, rows of light eyebrows are visible in the indicated strips.
Photo: O. Hercog 23/7/2021
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) worker
lighter colours – older worker bees
Photo: O. Hercog 23/7/2021
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) worker
Photo: O. Hercog 23/7/2021
.
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – worker
Photo: O. Hercog 27/7/2021
Male
Note the male's long, curved antennae and also the yellow crest on its forehead.
Just as thick unruly eyelashes of bright colours.
Classic form with a clear yellow band on the fore-breast and a hint of a second band at the end of the breast.
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male
Photo: O. Hercog 21/7/2021
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male
Photo: O. Hercog 21/7/2021
Darker form with an indistinct yellow stripe on the prothorax
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male
Photo: O. Hercog 21/7/2021
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male
Photo: O. Hercog 2021 21/7/2021
Another male form – the yellow colour is replaced by a greyish-yellow tone.
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – male
Photo: O. Hercog 27/7/2021
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – male
Photo: O. Hercog 27/7/2021
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Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – male
Photo: O. Hercog 27/7/2021
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Detail of the facial part of the head of a male stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidaris)
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male – head
Photo > O. Hercog 23/7/2021
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – male
The yellow colour of the vision is replaced by grey-yellow.
Photo: O. Hercog 27/7/2021
Male and worker on garlic. This male repeatedly forced his way into the hive „for the girls“ and even flew between neighbouring hives. So he didn't do what other males do – abandon the nest and politely wait for the queen somewhere outside.
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male and workers Photo: O. Hercog 22/7/2021
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male and workers Photo: O. Hercog 22/7/2021
Video catalogue
Mother
The young mother left the nest for the first time. Her colours are not yet final, which is why she is quite light.
Female worker
A female worker covered in pollen
This rock bee worker is not entirely typical.
Her colours aren't as bright. But that might be due to her age.
It might appear to be a red great-banded bumblebee (Bombus ruderarius). However, that one is smaller and stockier. Its abdomen isn't bright red-orange, rather it has elements of yellow. At the same time, it has rusty hairs on its legs, thanks to which it's possible to distinguish it from a buff-tailed bumblebee, which lacks such features.
Male
Typically coloured male
interesting male form – yellow elements are replaced by a grey-yellow colour.
Bumblebees are born as grey and colourless individuals. However, their bristles quickly take on the colours of their species, or their varieties, due to exposure to the air. Over time, however, they lose their colours.
This is very noticeable with dark colours, for example, male large earth bumblebees (Bombus lapidarius).
The result can then be such a „variant.“ However, it is just an ageing individual, whose coloured elements are turning grey and practically disappearing (yellow elements on the head and pronotum). This can surprise many people – they might think they have found a new individual.
This male was filmed in Prague in early August, which confirms this colour characteristic and its change.
Similar species
- Buff-tailed bumblebee
- Meadow bumblebee (Bombus pratorum) – dark form
- Mountain bumblebee
- Bombus soroeensis
- False bumblebee
- Vestigial bumblebee (Bombus rupestris)
How to distinguish it from similar species
Buff-tailed bumblebee
- Much smaller
* Mother of pearl 16 – 19 mm
* worker 9 – 18mm
* Samec 12 – 15 mm - The colours aren't as bright and contrasting
- Fuzz on the collection baskets has reddish to yellow colouring, the rock bumblebee has black ones
Buff-tailed bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Stone-tail bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Bumblebees PLUS – Red-shanked carder bee (Bombus ruderarius) queen
Photo: BWars
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) worker
Photo: O. Hercog 23/7/2021
Meadow bumblebee (Bombus pratorum) – dark form (without yellow stripe on the thorax)
- much smaller, shorter body
* mother: 15 – 17 mm
* Labourer: 9 – 14 mm
* samec : 11 – 13 mm - lighter, less saturated colours of black even on the rear (in worker buff-tailed bumblebees, these sometimes change and fade with age)
- optically narrower stripe on the rump (given the size, otherwise colour on the 4th - 6th caudal vertebrae)
- smaller head without a prominent wedge
- Males are often very brightly coloured in several forms, broader yellow stripes
Meadow bumblebee (Bombus pratorum)
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Stone-tail bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Please note:
– of different body shape, head, and also
eyebrows
Meadow bumblebee (Bombus pratorum) worker
Photo O. Hercog 22/6/2021 Prague
Rock bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) worker
Photo: O. Hercog 23/7/2021
Please note:
– of different body shape, head, and also the pilosity of the facial part of the head.
The yellow stripes of male bumblebees are distinctive.
Meadow bumblebee (Bombus pratorum) male
Photo O. Hercog 11/6/2021 Prague
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male
Photo: O. Hercog 21/7/2021
Meadow bumblebee (Bombus pratorum) male
Photo O. Hercog 25/6/2021 Prague
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male
Photo: O. Hercog 21/7/2021
VPlease note:
– of a different head shape
– yellow eye stripe on the face of a male meadow bee takes the form of a „brush“ but in a male buff-tailed bumblebee, it's the shape of a mask
Meadow bumblebee (Bombus pratorum) male – head
Photo: O. Hercog 22/6/2021
Rock bee-bee (Bombus lapidarius) male – head – facial area
– head shape and yellow webbing in a mask-like form
Photo; O. Hercog 23/7/2021
BumblebeeBombus wurflenii
- fairly similar to the rock bumblebee
- denser hair (spiky)
- multi-jaw pliers
- at the base there is a wider coloured end (3rd–6th segment) – one segment more than the rock-dwelling form
- Some species have a marked yellow band on the prothorax (not just males)
- smaller than a buff-tailed bumblebee
* mother 19 – 22 mm
* workers 13 – 16 mm
samec (14–16 mm)
Mountain bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Stone-tail bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Mountain bumblebee
Photo: Bumblebees etc.
Rock bee (Bombus lapidarius) worker on a butterfly bush
Photo: O. Hercog 23/7/2021
Bombus soroeensis
- very variable forms, some quite similar to the rock bumblebee (form with a red tip to the abdomen)
- smaller than a buff-tailed bumblebee
* matka 15 – 19 mm
worker 10 – 14 mm
* Samec 12 – 15 mm
Bombus soroeensis
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Stone-tail bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus soroensis) – male
Photo: S. Krejčík 2004
Buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus soroensis) – male
Photo: S. Krejčík 2004
Bumblebee confusus
- can be distinguished from the rock bumblebee by its „short-cut“ velvety hairs and short antennae
- Males have noticeably large and protruding eyes
- Size similar to the Buff-tailed Bumblebee
matka 18 – 24 mm
female worker 13 – 15 mm
fishing lure 14 – 18 mm
Bumblebee confusus
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Stone-tail bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
False bumblebee (Bombus confusus) – male
Source: Wikipedia
False bumblebee (Bombus confusus) – male
Source: Wikipedia
Vestigial bumblebee (Bombus rupestris)
Vestigial bumblebee (Bombus rupestris)
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Stone-tail bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Occurrence
- ubiquitous
- occurs across Europe
- In the Czech Republic, it occurs from lowlands up to mountain altitudes of 1,300 m (sun-drenched slopes).
- It often occurs in close proximity to humans, or rather, its presence is linked to human activity (a synanthropic species).
Biotop
- occurs in open habitats Wooded and open landscapes, urban space
Life cycle
- Later species
- Number of generations per season: once a season; the mothers hibernate from August
- Queen bees looking for nesting sites: from April to the end of May
- Nesting of queens: early March – mid-May
- New queen mothers are emerging: from the end of June to August
- The males appear: immediately after mothers, from July
- The nest ends: August – September depending on the weather
Successful mating of the stone bumblebee. The queen extends her (its) curved stinger. The male is pushed backwards as he has to avoid the stinger. If the male sits on the queen's walls, it is not mating, but an attempt.
Young bumblebee mothers find a suitable place for overwintering – hibernation – soon after mating. They very often choose a spot on the edge of a forest. There, they have a chance to hibernate in dry conditions. Here, they excavate a shallow chamber for overwintering (hibernaculum) in the forest floor litter.
A characteristic of the rock buff is that before entering the cell, a pathway remains, which is an entrance groove that is not usually filled in.
Please do not disturb the mother sleeping here – thank you.
Rock bee (Bombus lapidarius) hibernation chamber
Photo: J. Čížek
Larval feeding
- Dust collectors pollen stores
- Polyarticular (does not prefer just one plant, but a wide spectrum of different flowering plants) – it is reported that it has been observed on approximately 250 plant species, where it was collecting food
Nesting site
- They like to build their nests in rock crevices, but also in piles of stones or in buildings
- It also nests in the ground in abandoned rodent burrows, sometimes with surprisingly long tunnels.
(observed nesting in an earth cavity with a 2m tunnel – O. Hercog 2020) - It does not disdain an abandoned bird's nest in a tree hollow or birdhouse.
- It often occupies nests already taken by another bumblebee queen
Nest size
- Mostly large and strong nests
- Number of individuals 100 – 300 individuals (in the wild), more in captivity
Stone-mining bee (Bombus lapidarius) nest
Photo: P. Krčová – 07/2021
A peek into a rock bee's nest
Visiting bumblebees
- Vestigial bumblebee (Bombus rupestris)
Bumblebee attack strategy:
- The queen bumblebee seeks a developed host nest; she needs lots of workers.
- It will kill the original mother, spray the pheromones on the strong workers, and they will fight each other.
- If any survive by chance, the remaining workers will enslave them.
- However, it will wait and use the newly born worker bees.
- Meanwhile, it perfumes the entire nest with its scent, and so the newly born workers accept the bumblebee queen as their own and serve her.
How to tell the difference between a bumblebee and a 'pačmelák' (which is often used colloquially to refer to any larger bee, including bumblebees, or sometimes more specifically to certain types of larger, fuzzy bees).
Vestigial bumblebee (Bombus rupestris)
- The parasitic bumblebee has darker wings and a shorter head with broad temples
- Size
mother 18 – 25 mm
* connector 13 – 17 mm - The engine emits a distinct rattling sound
- His dark marks are showing through on his bottom.
- Dark wings
- The males have a greyish (yellowish-grey) collar on their chest after birth, as well as shiny light stripes on their rump. However, within a few days, these light hairs usually disappear, and they then become entirely black, with a red end to their rump.
- Young mothers fly out of their hiding places mainly in warm weather, which is why dark males are mainly seen in nature.
Vestigial bumblebee (Bombus rupestris)
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Stone-tail bumblebee
Source: Sikora A., Michołap P., Kadej M., Sikora M. Tarnawski D. 2018 „Bees in the city: Bumblebees of Wrocław“, Publ. Association Nature and Man.
Buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) - queen
Photo: O. Hercog 30/5/2021
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) queen
Photo: O. Hercog 11/7/2021
Bombus rupestris male
Photo: O. Hercog 17/7/2021
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) male
Photo: O. Hercog 21/7/2021
Information on breeding
Fright We recommend a large shudder, shudders are accepted willingly
Hallwaycorridor short and long, it's not decisive
Seating after settling, the mother often returns and immediately starts working
Mothers' returns in spring after hibernation: common
Self-assembly in the hive fairly common, mothers often attack nests already occupied by other mothers and take over their nesting sites
Interesting facts
- They belong to species that do not excessively disturb the urban environment. They inhabit urban parks etc.
- Young mothers reliably return to their nesting grounds after hibernation, and fights often occur.
- When settling, the mothers are quite aggressive, and in their fight for nesting sites, they often eliminate the original inhabitant.
- This species has very long legs
- In nature, it appears most often during the flowering period of dead-nettles.
- Female workers very often remove large amounts of bedding from the hives
- Following the death of the mother, some workers tend to form their own groups, separate from the nest – they lay eggs on the rim of the hive, or expand the wax comb outwards within the nest.
Photos and videos
Stone Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – queen on clover
Photo: H. Kříženecká
Stone-coloured bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – queen on a dead-nettle
Photo: H. Kříženecká
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – queen on barberry
Photo: H. Kříženecká
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – worker on whorled sage
Photo: H. Kříženecká
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – worker
Photo: A. Ungerová
Red-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) worker on a tufted vetch
Photo: H. Kříženecká
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – male on a thistle (male)
Photo: H. Kříženecká
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – male on a thistle (male)
Photo: H. Kříženecká
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – male on a⩽ Common Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides)
Photo: O. Hercog 25/7/2021
Stone-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – male
Photo: A. Ungerová 2020
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – workers are amassing at the entrance
Photo: O. Hercog 3/7/2021
Bombus lapidarius (stone-backed cuckoo bumblebee)
Photo: O. Hercog 5/7/2021
Stone bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – worker and large heath butterfly (Aphomila sociella) on a protective flap
The nocturnal prowling of worker ants on the protective flap gives the moth a chance to penetrate the nest.
Photo: O. Hercog 26/06/2021
An interesting video from a rock bumblebee nest. The queen fiercely defends her brood from a worker here.
It's hard to say whether the worker genuinely intends to eat the mother's eggs. Given the size of the clutch, we assume there are already small larvae in the clutch that the worker wants to feed. However, the mother decided to defend the clutch preventatively.
Therefore, there can be multiple interpretations of this behaviour. However, it seems unlikely that this nesting behaviour is due to egg-eating.
It was at the beginning of June 2017…
It was terribly hot, so the rock bee workers decided to transport the excess lining away from the nest – just because. Like when wives suddenly decide to rearrange the furniture.
Well, but the female workers moved this nearly 50cm long corridor. And just like with people – they did as they said they would. And they kept doing it, even though I had removed most of their bedding. They just treated it as evening entertainment.
Once the queen bumblebees have mated, they gorge themselves and then leave their natal nest. She will find a place to overwinter and there she will bury herself in the ground. In this video, a queen buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) is preparing her hibernaculum in leaf litter.
Also visit YouTube Čmeláci PLUS, where you'll find a variety of interesting videos about bumblebees.
Each video is accompanied by a comment that describes the video.