# bumble bees versus honey bees



## mare (Aug 31, 2006)

do bumble bees chase off the honey bees? i have been noticing alot of bumble bees on my flowers and not very many honey bees on them. the honey bees seem to be on the grass and clover more.


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## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

I see bumble bees and honey bees feeding peaceably together on the same plants, but I suspect the honey bees are more specialist feeders. Bumble bees are ground nesters you know, and there are various varieties.


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## mare (Aug 31, 2006)

i didnt know that bumble bees are ground nesters or that there are different varieties. i'll have to google them and learn more thanks


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## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

Got me to thinking about my information source, and I overspoke myself, not all bumble bees are ground nesters, like the ones we have locally. Found a cool website: http://www.bumblebee.org/faqNests.htm

Didn't know they had such short lives! Poor little critters...


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## mare (Aug 31, 2006)

RedDirt Cowgirl said:


> Got me to thinking about my information source, and I overspoke myself, not all bumble bees are ground nesters, like the ones we have locally. Found a cool website: http://www.bumblebee.org/faqNests.htm
> 
> Didn't know they had such short lives! Poor little critters...


interesting site--thanks for sharing. if the nest only survives for such a short period of time how do the bumble bees survive at all?


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## tom j (Apr 3, 2009)

I think there like a yellow jacket ,, wasp ,hornet , only queen getts through the winter .. I like bumble bees ,, there my 2nd set of toys , honey bee is the 1st ..
they seldom sting , and when they do its the same reason honey bees do ..
the wife just told me there is a nest in her flowers ,, and told me she will work with them there


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## Gailann Schrader (May 10, 2002)

We moved some round bales that had been sitting for a while years ago and I laid my hand on the round bale to steady it? Oddest vibration that I couldn't really "locate." After doing that two or three times, I realized it was COMING FROM THE BALE! BUMBLES HAD A NEST JUST INSIDE THE BALE!!!

I knocked out the nest (it looked very similar to a honeybee comb), the dog rushed over and ATE ALL OF IT - including the live bumbles!

Truly weird. But the dog was happy, I didn't get stung and we fed out the bale...


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