The Bumblebee
The Bumblebee
BIO/101
February 10, 2014
Alexandra Onyejiaka
The Bumblebee
The evolution of the bumblebee is a continuous flow of life from season to season. There are different stages of the life cycle which secure the existence of the bumblebee. If these stages of the life cycle did not exist the bumblebee would eventually become extinct. The internal environment of the bee works hand and hand with the external environment to ensure the survival of the bumblebee. Each season provides different circumstances for which the bumblebee behaves differently in order to prepare for the next season. Bumblebees undergo a complete metamorphosis.
The life cycle of a bumblebee has four stages which are the egg, the larva, the pupa, and the adult. According to Debbie Hadley (2014) the eggs are laid by the queen bee in clumps of pollen. More than likely a worker bee will tend to the egg for four days. The egg then becomes a larva. The worker bee then becomes responsible for feeding the larva by way of stored nectar or regurgitated pollen. After 10-14 days the larva becomes a pupa. Pupa is another incubation period overseen by the queen before adulthood is reached. The last stage is adulthood. At this stage, each bee assumes a role within the colony. The assumed roles are the working bee, the male reproductive, or the queen thus continuing the life cycle of the bumblebee.
The bumblebee also serves as a host for other insect life cycles such as the coponid flies and the nematodes parasite. These parasites target the bumblebee in mid-air, during hibernation, and when the bees dig looking for a proper nest to begin the hibernation season. Bumblebees are a food source for Birds, Anthropoids, and Mammals such as - Bee eaters, Spotted fly catchers, Shrikes, foxes, minks, weasels, bears, field mice, shrews and hedgehogs, crab spider, Robbers flies and Bee wolves (Predators of Bumblebees, 2013). The bumblebee unlike the honey bee can sting to protect the nest or the
BIO/101
February 10, 2014
Alexandra Onyejiaka
The Bumblebee
The evolution of the bumblebee is a continuous flow of life from season to season. There are different stages of the life cycle which secure the existence of the bumblebee. If these stages of the life cycle did not exist the bumblebee would eventually become extinct. The internal environment of the bee works hand and hand with the external environment to ensure the survival of the bumblebee. Each season provides different circumstances for which the bumblebee behaves differently in order to prepare for the next season. Bumblebees undergo a complete metamorphosis.
The life cycle of a bumblebee has four stages which are the egg, the larva, the pupa, and the adult. According to Debbie Hadley (2014) the eggs are laid by the queen bee in clumps of pollen. More than likely a worker bee will tend to the egg for four days. The egg then becomes a larva. The worker bee then becomes responsible for feeding the larva by way of stored nectar or regurgitated pollen. After 10-14 days the larva becomes a pupa. Pupa is another incubation period overseen by the queen before adulthood is reached. The last stage is adulthood. At this stage, each bee assumes a role within the colony. The assumed roles are the working bee, the male reproductive, or the queen thus continuing the life cycle of the bumblebee.
The bumblebee also serves as a host for other insect life cycles such as the coponid flies and the nematodes parasite. These parasites target the bumblebee in mid-air, during hibernation, and when the bees dig looking for a proper nest to begin the hibernation season. Bumblebees are a food source for Birds, Anthropoids, and Mammals such as - Bee eaters, Spotted fly catchers, Shrikes, foxes, minks, weasels, bears, field mice, shrews and hedgehogs, crab spider, Robbers flies and Bee wolves (Predators of Bumblebees, 2013). The bumblebee unlike the honey bee can sting to protect the nest or the
References: Hadley, D. (2014). Bumblebees-the genus bombus. Retrieved from: http://insects.about.com/od/antsbeeswaps/p/genusbombus.htm Honey Bee Suite. (2014). Bumblebee hibernate, honey bees do not. Retrieved from: www.honeybeesuite.com/bumble-bees-hibernate-honey-bees-do-not/ Predators of Bumblebee. (2013). Bumblebee predators. Retrieved from: http://www.bumblebee.org/PREDATORS.htm