How dangerous is a nest near human activity?
What you will learn here
- When might bumblebees possibly bother you
- How to resolve such a situation
- How to arrange coexistence with bumblebee neighbours
- Problematic neighbours – an unadaptable bunch of a certain kind
Bumblebees that „annoy and threaten“
We haven't yet met anyone who dislikes bumblebees. Likewise, bumblebees don't pose a threat to anyone.
Bumblebees are gentle teddy bears – You have to threaten them directly or their nest for them to start defending themselves..
However, sometimes the bumblebees can be a real nuisance, because if from the perspective of us humans it settles in unhappily And people feel that bumblebees are threatened.
This happens for example when bumblebees dwell in a place where people fear for their offspring. Sometimes it feels Allergic people at risk, as a sting could have consequences for them.
The vast majority of bumblebee species in the Czech Republic are friendly and there is no need to be afraid of them. The exception that proves the rule could be Tree bumblebee. It's a beautiful bumblebee, it looks like a punk rocker and sometimes behaves a bit like one too...
How to resolve the situation
Try living with bumblebees adapt to them for a while and let them live out their lives where they are.
For bumblebees, it is always the best is to leave them where they are and give them a chance to live out their life cycle = stay with them, share your living space with them, and make do with a little.
Most bumblebees have aActive nest for max 3 months, then it withers away..
With the exception of the inconspicuous, very mild and friendly common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum), which can tolerate sometimes until the autumn frosts. But these are very mild, that you will rather seek them out than fear them.
How to prepare for coexisting with bumblebee neighbours
If you are not in the immediate vicinity of a bumblebee nest, everything is fine for you and for the bumblebees. Bumblebees will not feel threatened and will not defend their nest. They will calmly work and will not have time to bother with you.
Try to respect their personal space:
- Move the garden tableor a bench to another place, distant a few metres to the bumblebee nest
- A moment Take another route And go and look at the bumblebees
- Place between your seating or movement area temporary screen and separate your space from the bumblebee nest space
- Mark the place clearly with some kind of sign., where the bumblebees are Enter the nest
- If you are worried about the children, Please build a fence/enclosure around the bumblebee nest. 2m x 2m a Explain to the children that bumblebees live there., that they shouldn't go there now and observe them together
- If bumblebees nest in a blanket, an old fur coat, in shoes Let them live where they are, or alternatively Evacuate as per the procedure shown HERE
- Invite to observe bumblebees too neighbours
A little work will be rewarded with the joy of living together and experiences with bumblebees.
An example from our bumblebee practice (an idea for you):
- Mum called, saying she was worried about her baby.
- After a while of talking, she understood she didn't have to be afraid, and when she put a tape barrier around the bumblebee nest, she would have an interesting pastime and a learning experience for her child.
- It was enough to explain to Mum how bumblebees live, that they don't pose any threat and, in case of problems, just Will the Bumblebee's quick turn help?a.
What to do when the bumblebee neighbours' nest dies.
When the nest is no more, it will be their place nesting site empty sight The life cycle of bumblebees .
You empty You will remove the nest or prevent bumblebees from re-establishing it there in the spring. It's enough To plug or cover the opening with a net, how they flew into the object, repair the wall they lived in, etc.
New The queen bumblebees often returnand they return to where they were born, so it's good not to let them there the following year if you don't want them there. If you enjoyed living with bumblebees, look forward to their return and or prepare for it.
You will learn more about the return of mothers HERE
Living with bumblebees and potential pitfalls – a potentially problematic bunch of buff-tailed bumblebees
Most bee species are friendly and you don't need to be afraid of them.
- Only if the bumblebees have a feeling that you want to harm their nest, they will defend it individual female workers
- If you intrude on the nest, they will defend iteverything
- If you avoid the nest, they won't notice you
- For food to go, or with a pollen/nectar load, you none Bumblebees won't hurt you
- Only if you wish touch a bumblebee, or press it, you will be threatened and then you Can it sting
The exception applies to territorial rowan bumblebees (Bombus hypnorum). They are quite territorial and They will protect their nest within a radius of several metres..
This is mainly due to the fact that they have to their protect the nest even from birds, whose nests it often occupies, and even a queen can drive the bird away.
Bee-flies are territorial primarily during the, When is their nest developed and new mothers are born in it, but further at a time when the nest is without its mother and it has a competitive phase.
The tree bumblebee most often nests in hollow trees, v Birdhouses, or under the roof in the cavities in thermal insulation. Its The nests are big and strong.You'll find it less often on the ground.
This bumblebee is beautiful and, like other bumblebee species, useful. PIf you respect its living space, cohabitation with this kind is also possible.
The docile bumblebee rule is confirmed by the field bumblebee (Bombus pascuorum). This type of bumblebee looks deceptively similar to the shrill carder bee. It often builds its nests in small piles of dry grass/moss. Its nests are small and inconspicuous, just like itself. Coexisting with this type of bumblebee is pleasant – neighbourly.
O of bumblebee species withYou can read it to me HERE.
For reliable resolution tree bumblebee we offer his comparison with the field bumblebee.
A relatively large species of bumblebee:
* Mother 17-22 mm
Workers 8-18 mm
Male 14-16 mm
Colouring
Chest markedly ochre-brown to black
black bum
end of bottom brown white
Territorial species – defends its nest
Buff-tailed bumblebee
(Bombus hypnorum)
Source „Bees in the City Bumblebees of Wrocław“
A small species of bumblebee:
Mother 15 – 18 mm
Labourer 9-15 mm
Male 12 – 17 mm
Colouring
chest hair variable from reddish-brown to greyish-black
* beginning of bottom grey-black
The end of the bottom is yellowish to reddish-brown.
A very mild, unobtrusive and persistent species
Common carder bee
Source „Bees in the City Bumblebees of Wrocław“
Yellow-tailed bumblebee – worker(Bombus hypnorum)
Field bumblebee (Bombus pascuorum) – worker
Photo H. Kříženecká
Tree bumblebee
Photo H. Kříženecká
Field bumblebee
Bombus pascuorum
Photo A. Ungerová
Bumblebee nest (Bombus hypnorum) in a birdhouse
Dave Jones's photo
A bumblebee nest (Bombus pascuorum) in a grass pile
Internet Photo