1 October β 14 February
the coastal calendar, unshifted
Old rodent burrows and wall cavities; the huge bees flying low in February are queens.
Only the mated queen survives winter; the entire colony β workers, males, the old queen β dies each autumn. So a nest is a one-year object, and the low, searching flight in early spring is a queen looking for a hole, not for flowers.
photos, sightings and recordings, off this site
where this species is on the list
| Phase | When | Length | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| hibernating | 1 October β 14 February | 137 days | True hibernation: body temperature drops and the animal cannot simply wake. |
| going about the year | 15 February β 9 March | 23 days | Feeding, holding territory, doing nothing the calendar singles out. |
| building | 10 March β 24 March | 15 days | Nest, burrow or den under construction, or being lined out. |
| larvae feeding | 25 March β 19 April | 26 days | Caterpillars, grubs or nymphs feeding and growing. |
| brood in the nest | 20 April β 14 July | 86 days | Dependent young in the nest, den or burrow, being fed. |
| courting | 15 July β 31 August | 48 days | Song, display, fighting, scent-marking β pairs forming or reaffirming. |
| new queens leaving | 1 September β 30 September | 30 days | Young leaving for good, looking for a territory of their own. |