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White-shouldered bumble bee

Bombus appositus

White-shouldered bumble bee

Nesting Preference

Nests have been recorded underground, at the ground surface, and above ground; it is not exclusively an underground nester.

Active Time of Year

Spring through summer. Activity starts later in cooler, higher-elevation locations, so mountain observations do not provide a fixed calendar for the valley.

Identifying Characteristics

A large, long-faced bumblebee. Queens and workers have pale facial hair and pale hair at the front of the thorax, contrasting with a black band between the wings. Much of the abdomen is straw-yellow to brownish orange. The sides of the thorax are mostly black, so the bee is not uniformly pale.

Fun Fact

This is a long-tongued bumblebee, a useful trait for reaching nectar in deep flowers.

Also called the mountain bumble bee, this species occurs in western grasslands, fields, and mountain meadows. Despite the alternate name, it is not restricted to high elevations: OSU researchers recorded it foraging in Willamette Valley blueberry and red clover fields.

Sources and Further Reading

Read more on Wikipedia

Solitary wasp

A solitary wasp has no colony of workers helping raise her young. A female may stock her own nest cells with food, or find a host for her developing offspring. Solitary describes social life; parasitoid describes a feeding strategy. A wasp can be both.

Social wasp

Social wasps share a nest and cooperate in raising young. In yellowjacket and paper wasp colonies, reproductive females lay eggs and workers help feed the brood and maintain the nest. They can defend that nest, so observing a forager is different from approaching a colony.

Non-native Social wasp

This is a social wasp introduced beyond its natural range. In this case the European paper wasp was introduced to North America from Europe, probably hidden in shipping materials. Non-native describes its origin, while social describes colony life.