ST. PAUL, Minn. — A bumblebee thought to be extinct in Minnesota has been found by a state wildlife specialist. Lisa Gelvin-Innvaer was out surveying a restored prairie for butterflies when the bumblebee caught her eye. It looked “unusual,” she said. She caught the bee, snapped a few pictures, and then released it, before resuming to her butterfly hunt. Back at the office she got into field books and realized that she had seen a Southern Plains Bumble Bee – or what apiculturists call “Bombus fraternus.” Distinctively the hairs were pressed against the body surface rather than being “fluffy” as is true for most bees. Also, there were two yellow bands across the thorax. It was thought the species had disappeared in Minnesota with degradation of native prairies, of which only 1% remain.
Southern Plains Bumble Bee. Although now uncommon in Minnesota, the oversize species survives in the Dakotas, Nebraska, Colorado and New Mexico, and one was spotted recentl in Chihuahua south of the Mexico border. In those places it’s active March to November. Image: Lisa Gelvin-Innvaer
Gelvin-Innvaer. With the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.