#3517 · 🐝 bees, wasps & ants

Buff-tailed Bumble Bee

🇳🇱 Aardhommel ·Bombus terrestris

🐝 Bees, wasps & ants 📍 in the Netherlands

7 photos from iNaturalist (Creative Commons) · credits & licences

1. © Thijs Valkenburg · CC BY-NC 4.0
2. © Bill Lucas · CC BY-NC 4.0
3. © djbich · CC BY-NC 4.0
4. © Luis P. B. · CC BY-NC 4.0
5. © Ferran Turmo Gort · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
6. © Jacques HALLOT · CC BY-NC 4.0
7. © Andres Bertens · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

what is it?

Bombus terrestris , the buff-tailed bumblebee or large earth bumblebee, is one of the most numerous bumblebee species in Europe. It is one of the main species used in greenhouse pollination, and so can be found in many countries and areas where it is not native, such as Tasmania. Moreover, it is a eusocial insect with an overlap of generations, a division of labor, and cooperative brood care. The queen is monandrous which means she mates with...

base stats

NL sightings 367iNaturalist, research grade
worldwide 100,935iNaturalist observations

Bars compare against all animals on log scales: up to 300,000 Dutch and 600,000 worldwide sightings (the most-seen species), 150 t (blue whale), 30 m and 400 years (Greenland shark).

fun facts

Spotted 367 times in the Netherlands on iNaturalist: the #15 most seen of the bees, wasps & ants in NL.
100,935 observations worldwide on iNaturalist.
Scientifically named in 1758 (268 years ago).