About the Two-Spotted Bumble Bee
The two-spotted bumble bee (Bombus bimaculatus) is a species of social bumble bee found in the eastern half of the United States and the adjacent south-eastern part of Canada. In older literature this bee is often referred to as Bremus bimaculatus, Bremus being a synonym for Bombus. The bee's common name comes from the two yellow spots on its abdomen. Unlike many of the other species of bee in the genus Bombus, B. bimaculatus is not on the decline, but instead is very stable. They are abundant pollinators that forage at a variety of plants.
Bombus bimaculatus is in the subgenus Pyrobombus, which is closely related to the subgenera Alpinobombus and Bombus out of the 15 total. Within Pyrobombus, B. bimaculatus is most closely related to B. monticola, B. sylvicola, and B. lapponicus. Additionally, B. bimaculatus can oftentimes be confused with B. impatiens and B. griseocollis, as their colorations are very similar.
Bombus bimaculatus was first described by Ezra Townsend Cresson, an American entomologist, in 1863. Workers look very similar to queens, with the two mainly distinguished by size. Sometimes large workers can be mistaken for... Wikipedia →