Irish Bumblebees for Beginners

Would you like to learn more about some of Ireland's bumblebees?

Ireland is home to twenty-one bumblebee species, but a handful turn up in gardens, hedgerows and parks right across the country — and once you know what to look for, they are surprisingly easy to tell apart.

In this talk, invertebrate naturalist Brian Murray will provide an in-depth introduction to the seven most common Irish bumblebees, including their identification characteristics and ecology.

Attendees will learn how to distinguish species by tail colour, banding pattern and size, what time of year each one is on the wing, and the flowers and habitats they favour. The talk also covers the basics of bumblebee life cycles — how a colony starts with a single queen each spring and builds up through the summer — and why these insects matter as pollinators, from garden vegetables to wild plants.

Who Is This For?

No prior knowledge of entomology is required. Whether you are a keen gardener, a budding naturalist, or simply curious about the buzzing visitors in your back garden, this talk will leave you able to put a name to the bumblebees you encounter on your next walk outdoors. Everyone is welcome.

How to Join

This event will be hosted online via Zoom. A link will be provided upon registration.

This event is part of a series of talks from the Butterfly Conservation Volunteer Branch if you are able to give a donation, all proceeds will go to conservation, awareness and engagement projects around butterflies, moths and pollinator habitats in Northern Ireland.

Photos by Sandy Millar on Unsplash and perrin o’hagan on Unsplash