Bombus cockerelli

Bombus cockerelli, known as Cockerell's bumblebee, is a yellow and black bumblebee that is known only from fewer than 30 specimens, collected at a few high-altitude (over 6,500 ft or 2,000 m) localities in the White Mountains of New Mexico, all within an area of less than 300 square miles (780 km²), giving it the smallest range of any of the ~250 species of bumblebees in the world.^[1]

Description

Bombus cockerelli is a typical bumblebee in appearance, with queens 15–20 mm (0.6–0.8 in) long, and distinctly smaller workers. The queens and workers are black on the head, with a few pale yellow hairs. The anterior and posterior thorax and the two basal and two terminal abdominal segments are yellow, while abdominal segments 3 and 4 are black.^[2] Males are unknown.

There is another species of bumblebee, Bombus balteatus, known to occur at high altitudes in Colorado, that is similar to B. cockerelli,^[3] but B. cockerelli has a shorter head, numerous intermixed black hairs on the anterior thorax, and the abdominal apex is yellow rather than rust-tinted.

History

The bee was first described in 1913, based on six specimens collected near the Rio Ruidoso in New Mexico. Between 1956 and 2011, not even one was seen.^[4] However, it is not unusual for insects to be unseen for long periods of time.

For a time, it was believed that this bee was a just a subspecies and not a full species. However, the rediscovery of the bee in December 2011 is expected to show without a doubt that it is its own species.^[4]

Conservation status

Despite how rarely its seen, the bee is not believed to be endangered or threatened. This is because its entire range is in national forest and tribal lands.^[4]

Biology

Nothing is known regarding the biology of this species.^[1]

References