Do bumblebees sting or bite?
Text Eneli Viik
Photo Evelii Viik
Translation: Liis
Red-tailed bumblebee
Red-tailed bumblebee Kivikimalane Bombus lapidarius
Bumblebees do sting. Quite as honeybees and wasps the bumblebees have a poisonous sting in their abdomen which they won’t hesitate to use in case of danger. As dangers they see such things as when a human prods them with a finger, treads on them or damages their nest.
Unlike honeybees bumblebees don’t die after stinging and can protect themselves another time too. Only the female and worker bumblebees are however equipped with a sting. They, however, make up the larger part of the family. The workers too are female. Male bumblebees are all unarmed and harmless.
There is no need to fear bumblebees. They are not aggressive or quarrelsome creatures and let themselves be studied quite closely on a flower. The peaceable nature of bumblebees is evident by the fact that although our Estonian bumblebee researchers catch them in untold numbers for species identification (to be let loose again afterwards), there are bumblebee scientists who have never been stung.
Join the „Meie kimalased – Our bumblebees“ group on Facebook: LINK
- so you can share your photos from your own home garden with other bumblebee friends!
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