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A bumblebee, also written bumble bee, is a member of the bee genus ''Bombus'', in the family Apidae. The brood parasitic or cuckoo bumblebees have sometimes been classified as a subgenus or genus, ''Psithyrus'', but are now usually treated as members of ''Bombus''. This genus is the only extant group in the tribe Bombini, though a few extinct related genera (e.g., ''Calyptapis'') are known from fossils. Over 250 species are known, found primarily in higher latitudes or at higher altitude in the Northern Hemisphere, although they also occur in South America; however, a few lowland tropical species are known. European bumblebees have been introduced to New Zealand and Tasmania. Bumblebees are social insects which form colonies with a single queen. Colonies are smaller than those of honeybees, growing to as few as 50 individuals in a nest. Female bumblebees can sting repeatedly, but generally ignore humans and other animals. Cuckoo bumblebees do not make nests; their queens aggressively invade the nests of other bumblebee species, kill the resident queens and then lay their own eggs which are cared for by the resident workers. Bumblebees have round bodies covered in soft hair (long, branched setae), called pile, making them appear and feel fuzzy. They have aposematic (warning) coloration, often consisting of contrasting bands of colour, and different species of bumblebee in a region often resemble each other in mutually protective Müllerian mimicry. Harmless insects such as hoverflies often derive protection from resembling bumblebees, in Batesian mimicry, and may be confused with them. Nest-making bumblebees can be distinguished from similarly large, fuzzy cuckoo bees by the form of the female hind leg. In nesting bumblebees, it is modified to form a pollen basket, a bare shiny area surrounded by a fringe of hairs used to transport pollen, whereas in cuckoo bees, the hind leg is hairy all round, and pollen grains are wedged among the hairs for transport. Like their relatives the honeybees, bumblebees feed on nectar, using their long hairy tongues to lap up the liquid; the proboscis is folded under the head during flight. Bumblebees gather nectar to add to the stores in the nest, and pollen to feed their young. They forage using colour and spatial relationships to identify flowers to feed from. Some bumblebees rob nectar, making a hole near the base of a flower to access the nectar while avoiding pollen transfer. Bumblebees are important agricultural pollinators, so their decline in Europe, North America, and Asia is a cause for concern. The decline has been caused by habitat loss, the mechanisation of agriculture, and pesticides. ==Etymology and common names== The word "bumblebee" is a compound of "bumble" + "bee" — "bumble" meaning to hum, buzz, drone, or move ineptly or flounderingly. The generic name ''Bombus'', assigned by Pierre André Latreille in 1802, is derived from the Latin word for a buzzing or humming sound.〔Wiktionary entry for "bombus"〕 According to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), the term "bumblebee" was first recorded as having been used in the English language in the 1530 work ''Lesclarcissement'' by John Palsgrave, "I bomme, as a bombyll bee dothe." However the OED also states that the term "humblebee" predates it, having first been used in 1450 in ''Fysshynge wyth Angle'', "In Juyll the greshop & the humbylbee in the medow." The latter term was used in ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' (''circa'' 1600) by William Shakespeare, "The honie-bags steale from the humble Bees." An old provincial name, "dumbledor", also denoted a buzzing insect such as a bumblebee or cockchafer, "dumble" probably imitating the sound of these insects, while "dor" meant "beetle". In ''On the Origin of Species'' (1859), Charles Darwin speculated about "humble-bees" and their interactions with other species: However, "bumblebee" remained in use, for example in ''The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse'' (1910) by Beatrix Potter, "Suddenly round a corner, she met Babbitty Bumble--"Zizz, Bizz, Bizzz!" said the bumblebee." Since World War II "humblebee" has fallen into near-total disuse. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「bumblebee」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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