DSC_8792 Short-haired bumblebee (Bombus subterraneus latreillellus) male mating with freshly emerged queen on nest. Mainly found in the drier, colder, inland part of the South Island, this is the rarest of the four bumblebee species introduced into NZ from England in 1885 and 1906. Small numbers remain at a few locations in the central South Island. Sadly, this species became extinct in England 1989, and we now host the last remaining representatives of the genotype of B.subterraneus which once ranged over most of England. Mackenzie Country *
DSC_8493 Short-haired bumblebee (Bombus subterraneus latreillellus) a male mating 'scrum' over a freshly emerged queen, just inside the entrance to a wild nest in late summer. This bumblebee is mainly found in the drier, colder, inland part of the South Island, and is now the rarest of the four bumblebee species introduced into NZ from England in 1885 and 1906. Small numbers remain at a few locations in the central South Island. Sadly, this species became extinct in England 1989, and we now host the last remaining representatives of the genotype of B.subterraneus which once ranged over most of England. Mackenzie Country *
DSC_1582 Short-haired bumblebee (Bombus subterraneus latreillellus) distinctive 'pale' male. Mainly found in the drier, colder, inland part of the South Island, this is the rarest of the four bumblebee species introduced into NZ from England in 1885 and 1906. Small numbers remain at a few locations in the central South Island. Sadly, this species became extinct in England 1989, and we now host the last remaining representatives of the genotype of B.subterraneus which once ranged over most of England. Mackenzie Country *
