How to identify endangered bumblebee nests, protection options
What you will learn here
- Where you can encounter a nest of endangered bumblebees
- What to do with such a nest
- Who can I contact for help?
Bumblebee nest in danger
Sometimes bumblebees become so unlucky that they are themselves at risk:
- It could be their nest, which you accidentally destroyed.
- It could be a nest in the compost you are currently handling.
- Sometimes bumblebees take up residence in the path you use.
- You may also discover a nest during renovations to a house, shed, in a meadow while mowing hay, etc.
- It could also be a nest that was dug up by a dog.
- Sometimes you accidentally dig up a place where bumblebees nest
- Bumblebees sometimes nest in places you don't expect them : an old blanket on the balcony, fur in the gazebo, in a cavity in the garage, in wellies placed somewhere in the corner, ...
Don't let dogs dig in burrows Photo J. Čížek
Bumblebee nest in a hollow in the ground
Photo Stock Images Alamy
Sometimes you can come across a bumblebee nest while doing some outdoor work. The nest may be badly damaged, but it can still be collected and saved if the queen is still inside.
Steve Harris provided us with a video of an accidentally dug up bumblebee nest (Bombus pratorum). He filmed the video in his garden in May 2020 in his garden in Suffolk (Great Britain – UK).
Petra was looking for a place where the mother rock bumblebee was flying. She finally found a cavity in the wall of the garage. There was nothing she could do here, she just marked it and left the window open so that the bumblebees had a free way.
A rock bumblebee (Bopmbus lapidarius) has taken up residence in a cavity in the garage floor
Photo P. Benešová (4/2020)
Sometimes bumblebees find an old blanket or fur on the porch and settle there.
Pamela White provided us with a video of her find, filmed in April 2020 in Chattanooga, Tennessee (US).
In all of these cases, the bumblebee nest is in danger and needs human help .
Even though bumblebees will defend their nest, there is no need to fear them. It is possible to help them and save their nest.
If you can, leave the nest where you found it
Let the bumblebees calm down and at night, preferably in red light (flashlight, bicycle taillight, etc.), try to return their home to its original condition, or at least adjust it to a usable condition.
If you have broken into their home, try to cover it and leave it alone . A larger flower pot with a cut edge is enough to cover the scratched place so that they can fly out through it . It can also be a board or a large stone. But always with a clear path to the nest .
Compost can be raked from the other side , the road can be left unused for a while , etc.
If you have discovered a bumblebee nest that would endanger your lawn mowing, mark the spot so you don't miss it .
Sign at the site of a natural bumblebee nest
Photo Bora Ovčín
A nice rescue of a ransacked nest by Jarda Krause from the Pardubice Fire Department.
Jarda replaced the ransacked passage to the nest with a hose and also made a beautiful portal to the entrance to the nest, thanks to which it no longer rains in the nest.
Nest rescue after the fire department
Photo J. Kraus (5/2020)
If the nest cannot be left where it was found, the bumblebees can be evacuated
If none of the previous options are suitable, evacuation of the bumblebees is possible. This is a really extreme case , because moving a nest that is not threatened by anything is in direct violation of the law .
However, in cases where the nest is severely damaged, directly threatened and would disappear without intervention, evacuation is the last chance to save it .
How is this solved? The nest, or rather its remains, are transferred to the hive at the location of the discovery, the bumblebees are caught from the nest and the nest is transferred to a new location, as far away from the original as possible so that the bumblebees do not return (preferably to a distance greater than 3 km).
The work is not difficult, but beginner beekeepers are afraid of it. That is why the Bumblebee Quick Rota was created as a selfless service Bumblebee PLUS, see HERE
When it makes no sense to evacuate the nest
Sometimes a bumblebee nest is so damaged that evacuation is no longer possible :
- if the rescuer is not sufficiently equipped and determined
- if at least part of the nest with cocoons, queen and workers cannot be evacuated
- Only workers without a nest cannot be evacuated, they would search for one and would perish without it
- if the rescuer cannot go and catch the remaining workers, they will look for a place in the original place the next day
Then it is better to leave the bumblebees in place, cover it so that it does not rain and so that the bumblebees can fly out. The hive will disappear on its own without the mother. Theoretically, it is possible to transfer the remaining cocoons, but this is a job for experienced people and there is not much chance of success here...