![]() This means that they are active during the day, and rest at night. Like most bees, these insects are diurnal. Ensure that the species you choose has suitable food sources planted to feed from. Another important factor is the plant species located nearby. It is important to provide suitable nest locations for the bees. It also helps local populations increase their genetic diversity and range. Keeping hives can be a wonderful way to increase pollination in an area. The United States Department of Agriculture provides a comprehensive guide to bumblebee keeping. Instead, cultivation of nests in the form of beekeeping is preferred. There are very few instances where people keep them as pets. Most are colonial animals, and live in a collective nest. Though bumblebees are much more docile than other bee species, for the most part they do not make good pets. Humans use them for plant pollination, and breed them in captivity. Farmers use buff-tailed bumblebees in particular for the purpose of pollinating crops. Scientists consider some species of bumblebees partially domesticated. Another strong impact to populations is pesticides, which often kill all insects, beneficial or not. Pollution, deforestation, urbanization, and agriculture, all kill off the native plants these insects rely on to survive. Virtually everything impacts bees, bumble or otherwise. Humans even breed some species of bumblebees in captivity for the purpose of pollinating crops! Sadly, many species are suffering from human activity. Pollination of plants is essential in the production of food, and without bees many species of plants would be unable to reproduce. Bumblebee and Human InteractionĪcross the globe, these insects are extremely important to human agriculture and food production. Spreading pollen aids in the pollination and reproduction of the plants. Scientists call this a mutualistic relationship, because the bees collect pollen from the flowers, and spread it to other flowers as they feed. Contrastingly, some species are generalists and feed on just about any plant species. In some regions, certain species will specialize in feeding from specific plants. To reach the nectar, they use a long tongue called a proboscis. These insects feed exclusively on nectar from plants. However, in this case they are actually beneficial to the ecosystem. Humans have also introduced some species to areas that are outside of their native range, like New Zealand. They are absent from Antarctica, most of Africa, Australia and some of the surrounding islands, and southern India. The different species live on nearly every continent on earth. With over 250 species, these bees have nearly widespread distribution, known as cosmopolitan distribution. These bees, however, can thrive! Some species even live in the Arctic! They can live in colder areas because they have methods of maintaining body temperature that many other insects do not. Usually, bees cannot survive in regions where it is too cold. They also live in areas with higher altitudes, like mountainous regions. Most bumblebee species live in temperate regions, and can tolerate cold climates more easily. Conversely, if she fertilizes an egg with sperm she has stored from the summer, it will produce a female bee. If she lays an unfertilized egg, it will produce a male.
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