Bumblebee nest

 Buff-tailed bumblebees Bombus terrestris are nesting under a moss-covered pile of rocks in the garden. There were field mice living in the rock pile last summer and apparently it's quite common for these bumblebees to nest in their tunnels after the rodents have abandoned them.

The workers are very active and there's a lot of busy pollen collecting going on at the moment, with bees returning with full pollen baskets very few minutes yesterday afternoon.

The pollen they are carrying is orange and most of it is probably coming from this plant, Geum 'Totally Tangerine', which is in full bloom. It's an excellent bumblebee plant for species with short tongues, with open, easily accessible flowers and a long flowering period. The bees collect the pollen by working their way around the central tuft of stamens, buzzing to shake the pollen free and into their fur, they combing it into their pollen baskets.