Franklin Bumble Bee (Bombus franklini) | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (2024)

FAQs

Is Bombus franklini extinct? ›

Bombus franklini is currently considered to be a Species of Concern by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS 2009).

Franklin bumble bee (Bombus franklini) is thought to have the most limited distribution of all known North American bumble bee species and one of the most limited geographic distributions of any bumble bee in the world.

The rusty patched bumblebee (bombus affinis), is federally endangered, and lives mostly in the midwestern United States. As stated in its name, it has a small rust colored spot on its second abdominal segment. Yes, bombus affinis populations are rapidly dwindling.

It lives only in a 190-by-70-mile (310 by 110 km) area in southern Oregon and northern California, between the Coast and Sierra-Cascade mountain ranges. It was last seen in 2006.

The Southern Plains bumblebee has become twice as rare as other bees in recent decades as its habitats have degraded and disappeared. The species has vanished altogether from six states. We petitioned to protect the Southern Plains bumblebee as an endangered species in 2022.

Epeoloides pilosulus has garnered a large amount of interest because it is considered one of the rarest bees in North America. Though long suspected to be in the Lakewood area, these are the first confirmed records of the species in Wisconsin since 1910 when it was found and identified in Dane county.

Franklin's bumble bees are vulnerable to habitat loss and alteration. Fire suppression contributes to loss of meadow habitat. Disease, pesticide applications, potential competition with honey bees for floral resources, and climate change present additional threats.

The word "bumblebee" is a compound of "bumble" and "bee"—'bumble' meaning to hum, buzz, drone, or move ineptly or flounderingly. The generic name Bombus, assigned by Pierre André Latreille in 1802, is derived from the Latin word for a buzzing or humming sound, borrowed from Ancient Greek βόμβος (bómbos).

However, the range of its habitat has shrunk, and the majority of states throughout the country have reported significant population declines. The combined consequences of habitat loss, fragmentation, harmful pesticide use, climate change, and diseases place the American bumble bee at risk for extinction.

Experts say that Maine, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Idaho, North Dakota, Wyoming and Oregon each have zero or close to zero American bumblebees left.

Can Bombus sting? ›

Only bumblebee workers and queens possess stingers, similar to honeybees and wasps. Drones, on the other hand, are incapable of stinging. The bumblebee's stinger serves as a defensive mechanism, injecting venom into the recipient's body upon stinging.

Queens have the longest lifespan, living around a year if they successfully mate or a month if they are unsuccessful. Rusty patched bumble bee workers life anywhere from a few weeks to a few months, averaging approximately 28 days. Rusty patched bumble bee males live an average of 2 weeks after emerging as adults.

Only found across northern California and southern Oregon between the Coast and Sierra-Cascade mountain ranges, Franklin's bumble bee holds the distinction of having the narrowest distribution of any bumble bee in the world.

Eight states — Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wyoming — have lost the American bumblebee entirely. The species has declined by 99% in New York and by more than 50% in the Midwest and the Southeast. The Endangered Species Act can protect this bee.

The US Fish & Wildlife Service declared the rusty patched bumblebee (Bombus affinis) endangered today (January 10). It's the first such listing for a bumblebee in the U.S. and the first for any bee species in the continental U.S.

Extinction is forever. And in that regard, honey bees are not threatened and they are not endangered. Rich: In fact, there are probably more honey bees on the planet now than there have ever been.

The massive bee was rediscovered alive in Indonesia last month, decades after it was last seen. Wallace's Giant Bee was named after discoverer Alfred Russell Wallace, who found the massive species. The last time a specimen was spotted was 1981.

Megachile pluto, also known as Wallace's giant bee or raja ofu ( lit. 'king of the bees'), is a large resin bee found in Indonesia. With a wingspan of 63.5 mm (2.5 in), it is the largest known living bee species.

Eight states — Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wyoming — have lost the American bumblebee entirely. The species has declined by 99% in New York and by more than 50% in the Midwest and the Southeast. The Endangered Species Act can protect this bee.