The Common Carder bee

The Common Carder bee, Bombus pascuorum is one of 4 brown bumblebees found in the UK. They are widespread and common and found regularly in a variety of habitats including gardens. They are a long tongued species, and will exploit flowers from Fabaceae and Scrophulariaceae especially. Often they can appear to be faded in colour at this time of year, and may be identified by the black hairs on the abdomen. This means that close examination is necessary to identify them correctly. The other 3 brown species are more specialised in their habitat requirements and are no longer common or widespread unfortunately.