Early Bumblebee

As the name suggests, the Early Bumblebee is one of the earliest to emerge from hibernation, and so in the south can  actually have two generations produced in a single year.

This far north, there'll likely be just one. The pregnant Queen wakes and sets to work around March, with workers (all female) emerging from their eggs after about 6 weeks. They then set to foraging for nectar and pollen for the new Queen and male larvae, which come out into the world in May / June.

The males are basically there to mate with the newly emerged Queens, and will die come winter, while the Queens will find a place to hibernate, ready for the whole dance to start again next year.

This is a male (there were 2-3 males on the chive flowers, and one much larger, twin-yellow-striped, new Queen buzzing about).