Very new bee and a bug for ID

[Hedera]

This pristine bumblebee landed near me, and waved a front leg at the camera. Is it a newly hatched queen? Which kind?


The bug was on a tomato plant, I think it's a capsid of some kind.

[Geoff F]

As none of the experts have replied so far, I will start off the bidding here.

The bumblebee appears to have rather dark wings and I can't see any pollen baskets so I'm thinking about a Cuckoo Bumblebee and the yellow side patches on it's abdomen make me consider Bombus Vestalis. But the rather orange/red thoracic stripe does seem a bit too dark and there are some male bumblebees around to confuse the situation even more.

So I would wait for a second opinion on this one.

The green insect looks very like a Common Green Capsid to me Lygocoris pabulinus.

[JRsbugs]

The bee looks like a female Bombus vestalis, they are huge compared to the male. There is no queens as such as they don't have workers.

I doubt it would be B. bohemicus but there is always a possibilty.

I had some pics on here of a mating pair of B. vestalis if I can find them.

Janet

[JRsbugs]

Here's the pics

Message - Wild About Britain Pics

[tristanba]

the plant bug is certainly L. pabulinus

[Hedera]

Thanks all. I've put another shot on here, but it certainly looks as if it's vestalis. If you could confirm please; I've not seen one like it before.

[Geoff F]

It certainly looks like B. vestalis. B. bohemicus is rather similar but the yellow thoracic band tends to be lighter in colour and the abdomen yellow side patches are smaller.

Male B. vestalis can have a faint yellow partial band at the start of the abdomen. As appears likely with Janet's photos.

[Hedera]

Thank you Geoff. She was rather beautiful and very large, that's why I thought of a queen.