About Bombus hortorum (Linnaeus, 1761)
This species of bumblebee, Bombus hortorum, has an oblong head and a very long tongue that measures around 15 mm (0.59 in), and can reach up to 20 mm (0.79 in) in some individuals. The tongue is long enough that the bee often flies with it extended while collecting nectar. Queen bees vary in size, with body lengths between 19 and 22 mm (0.75 and 0.87 in), and wingspans ranging from 35 to 38 mm (1.4 to 1.5 in). Worker bees are almost as large as queens, and the largest workers overlap in size with the smallest queens. Their bodies are black, with a yellow collar, a narrow yellow band on the scutellum, and a third yellow band covering the first and second abdominal terga. The tail is white. Darker color forms with very little yellow fur are common.
Bombus hortorum is distributed across Europe as far north as 70°N in southern Scandinavian tundra. Its western range extends to Iceland, where it was likely introduced. In the south, its range reaches the middle of the Iberian Peninsula, southern Italy (Calabria), northern Turkey, and most Mediterranean islands, excluding Corsica, Sicily, and probably Sardinia. Its range continues across northern and central Asia through Siberia to the Altai Mountains, and extends southeast to northern Iran. The species was introduced to New Zealand in 1885, where it still persists but is not particularly common. It is also found in America, especially in Florida, and occurs across the entire British Isles, including Orkney and Shetland.
This bumblebee is commonly found in grassland environments that have abundant flowers for foraging. A study of spatial patterns of Bombus across different habitats found that B. hortorum is most abundant in recently cattle-grazed grasslands, when compared to arable land, sheep-grazed grassland, unmanaged land, and disturbed land plots. Cattle grazing shapes Bombus habitat because cattle feeding activity creates a more diverse floral environment, which this bumblebee prefers for foraging. Due to B. hortorum's localized lifestyle and ongoing destruction and loss of grassland habitats, populations of this species are predicted to decline in the future. To support conservation of Bombus hortorum, large areas with diverse foraging plants and nesting sites should either be left unmanaged to maintain natural habitat, or be extensively grazed by cattle during summer to promote plant diversity and develop a flower-rich environment preferred by Bombus.
