Animal Facts:
The bumblebee is part of the bee family, which has one of the most important jobs in the animal kingdom: they are responsible for pollinating the majority of plants on the planet.
And while among the thousands of species only the honey bee is used by humans as natural livestock for honey production, bumblebees also pollinate various plants such as apple and cherry trees, tomatoes, cotton and mustard – among many others.
And bumblebees are particularly effective pollinators because they use more than one technique.
Like other bees, they fill the pollen baskets on their hind legs with pollen, some of which will stick to their hairy bodies. Then, when visiting other flowers, grains will fall off, effectively pollinating the flowers they fly to.
But they use yet another method, which is called ‘buzz pollination’. Because of their large bodies and their strong flight muscles, bumblebees can make the flower they are sitting on vibrate and are thus effectively dislodging more pollen from it.
Other than honey bees who produce large amounts of honey, bumblebees only store small amounts of nectar – just enough to feed their own colony. Since this nectar is usually consumed rapidly, it does not have the time to go through the transformation process that would turn it into honey. But it is still searched out by other animals, such as bears or skunks, which raid bumblebee hives for the sweet treat as well as for protein in the form of larvae, eggs and adult bumblebees.
Bumblebees are generally peaceful insects but they can get aggressive when they feel threatened or their nest is attacked. The males, called drones, don’t have a stinger. But the females have a smooth stinger with which they can sting more than once.
To communicate, bumblebees have several choices. As well as doing ‘waggle dances’ to tell other bumblebees where good sources of nectar can be found, they also leave pheromones on the flowers they visit. Other bumblebees then use their antennae to smell these scent marks.
It has been said that bumblebees defy aerodynamics and that they shouldn’t be able to fly because they are too heavy for their four delicate wings. But this mystery has been solved: bumblebees not only flap their wings rapidly – at more than 130 beats per second – but they also flap their wings back and forth rather than up and down. This way, they create a mini-hurricane underneath each wing, and the lower air pressure helps them to stay aloft.
The bumblebee also uses its wingbeats to cool down its nest when it gets too hot. They hover over the top of the nest to circulate the air, just as a ceiling fan does. And they use their wings to do the opposite, too. Despite insects being classified as ectotherms, meaning that they can’t regulate their body temperature themselves and are dependent on outside sources for heat, bumblebees can generate some heat through shivering in order to fly – if the temperature of their environment is not too cold.
This makes them one of the first insects to fly out, come spring, when other bee species still have to wait in their hives.
Golden bumblebee nests are built close to, or in, the ground, under piles of wood or dead leaves or in abandoned mouse holes.
Their colonies are much smaller than honey bee hives, with a maximum of 400 workers.
A colony is started in early spring by a bumblebee queen who has hibernated the winter months. She flies out to drink nectar, then searches for a suitable place to build her colony. Once she finds it, she collects pollen from flowers, lays eggs and shivers to keep them warm. When the eggs hatch, the queen feeds the larvae pollen. Then, when they are two weeks old, the larvae spin cocoons around themselves in order to develop into adult bumblebees.
The bumblebees born in spring and early summer are always female workers.
From the moment these first worker bumblebees hatch, the queen bumblebee never leaves the nest again. Her only job now is to lay more eggs.
Meanwhile, the worker bumblebees leave the nest and collect nectar and pollen. They also take over the chores of guarding, cleaning or fanning the nest as well as feeding the larvae and the queen bumblebee.
Towards the end of summer, the queen lays eggs from which drones and new queen bumblebees hatch. They all fly out from the nest and mate with drones or future queen bumblebees from other nests, respectively.
While future queen bumblebees prepare to hibernate to build a new colony in spring, the male bumblebees die after mating.
Some spiritual meanings:
The bumblebee belongs to one of the most important animal species alive, as they pollinate a large number of plants.
They are thus messengers of service.
Your services or products might be extremely useful for a large group of people. Do what you are passionate about because by fulfilling your own needs, you will help many.
At times, bumblebee people can become workaholics.
Is this a problem you have?
Or are you not productive enough? Are you disorganised? Decide what’s essential and what’s not.
Also, make time to savour the honey of your endeavours and extract the sweetness from life.
Even though the bumblebee is able to sting people, this insect is generally peaceful. It only shows its warrior energy when protecting itself and its colony.
Are you too aggressive around others?
Or do others tend to react aggressively towards you?
Can you communicate your boundaries clearly without needing to attack?
The antennae on the bumblebee’s head tell of your direct link to the higher planes.
Do you use your intuition to receive the messages being sent to you? Are you connected to your higher self?
Just like the bumblebee seems to do the impossible by flying with tiny wings compared to their body size, you can accomplish seemingly impossible goals. Dream big.
Bumblebees are one of the few insects that can control their body temperature to some extent and thus teach you to become the master of your own body.
Are you taking good care of it? Are you sleeping enough and eating healthily? Do you exercise regularly?
Having a spirit animal that lives inside a colony means you would thrive living in a community where the emphasis is laid on cooperation and sharing resources.
Do you need more connections to others? Are you too lonely in your life?
The bumblebee is a master of responsibilities and fulfils important tasks for the colony.
Do you feel you have too many responsibilities at once? Are you burdened down?
Also, do you not feel valued enough by others?
Or do you not value what others provide?
Bumblebees teach us about prosperity, as they visit many flowers and take as much pollen as they need.
Are you seeing the prosperity in your life? Is there a lack in any area? Do you need to work on your belief system regarding abundance?
If you want to read up on more spirit animals or want to learn more about spiritual topics in general, pick up a copy of my book “Willow and Strix – A spiritual journey” ©, available as a paperback or ebook (free for kindle unlimited users) US – UK – DE and in other countries
A. Wakan's Spirit Animals 