Southern Plains Bumble Bee
This long-faced native bumble bee connects deep prairie flowers to an underground social colony that lasts only one growing season.
Artwork inspired by Aaron Douglas
Queens establish new nests in spring; workers then gather pollen and nectar until males and next year’s queens appear late in the season. The elongated face helps distinguish the species and suits flowers whose nectar sits beyond shorter tongues.
Photograph several angles without blocking the flower, and never excavate a suspected nest; protecting continuous bloom and undisturbed ground does more than any single sighting. Watch diverse native blooms rather than concentrating on ornamental beds.
- Best clue
- Large bumble bee with a long face, black middle, and pale bands front and rear
- Habitat
- prairie, open farmland, roadsides, and flower-rich grassland
- Regional status
- Native declining pollinator
Quick guide
- Look
- Long narrow face
- Confirm
- Pale front band
Confirm Southern Plains Bumble Bee in habitat
- First mark
- Read large bumble bee with a long face, black middle, and pale bands front and when identifying Southern Plains Bumble Bee.
- Confirm
- Compare ground-nesting colony together with pale front band before accepting the identification.
- Where to search
- Use prairie, open farmland, roadsides, and flower-rich grassland in Kansas, United States as habitat context and check April–October.
- Do not disturb
- Diverse native blooms rather than concentrating on ornamental beds.
Good to know
Its elongated face reaches nectar beyond shorter tongues, linking a visible identification feature directly to the flowers this declining bee can efficiently use.
Notice these
- Long narrow face
- Pale front band
- Pale tail bands
- Ground-nesting colony