An Early Spring Bumblebee.

This queen Tree Bumblebee, Bombus hypnorum, was spotted in my local copse today.It is one of the earliest bumblebees to be seen in the spring and can be said to be a 'woodland edge' species.However in the UK,where it has been resident since 2001,this bee likes to make use of nestboxes as well as tree holes,in which to create a nesting colony.

The Yellow-legged Mining Bee.

A common spring solitary bee is Andrena flavipes or the Yellow-legged Mining Bee.It is numerous in Southern England and I came across several individuals yesterday on south facing chalk cliffs. 

Andrena flavipes nests are constructed in the ground, and are often found in dense aggregations in suitable,exposed banks and cliffs, tended lawns, flower beds, roadside verges and in sparsely vegetated field margins.
In most areas where the bee is found, this Yellow-legged Mining Bee plays host to the cuckoo bee Nomada fucata.

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