Gypsy Cuckoo Bee. Again.. (Or maybe not!)

Gypsy Cuckoo Bee (Bombus bohemicus)

We are lucky that in our area it is possible to find many of the bumblebee species that make up the British list. The Gypsy Cuckoo Bee is one that can be locally common in these parts, and that is not surprising given that the host for this cuckoo bee is the White-tailed Bumblebee which is abundant. What is interesting is that the Gypsy Cuckoo Bee is often uncommon in many parts of Britain where the White-tailed Bumblebee thrives. It's also worth noting that I've only seen this species once before, last year (19/8/11), and that individual was also a male.

Gipsy Cuckoo Bee

Gipsy Cuckoo Bee (Bombus bohemicus)

During my visit to the Upper Neath Valley today I found this Cuckoo Bee. Luckily it sat well enough for me to take a few record shots and luckier still they show enough detail to confirm its identity. The key feature in this particular case is the antenna. First of all the antenna of this bee has 13 segments which make it a male (females have 12 segments). The markings of this bee are consistent with Vestal Cuckoo Bee (Bombus vestalis) and Gipsy Cuckoo Bee. The most reliable means of separating the two is by looking at the respective lengths of the 3rd and 5th segments of the antenna. In the Vestal Cuckoo Bee the 3rd segments is much shorter than the 5th segment but the Gipsy Cuckoo Bee shows the 3rd segment near equal length to the 5th, as shown below.

Antenna detail

The host species for the Gipsy Cuckoo Bee is the White-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lucorum).