Shrill Carder Bee

The shrill carder bee, named after the loud, high-pitched buzz produced by its queens, is facing a rapid decline possibly caused by intensive farming in the second half of the 20th Century and fragmented populations.  It is now limited  to a handful of locations in the UK, including large military ranges and unimproved pastures in Somerset, Gwent, Pembrokeshire, Glamorgan, and along the Thames corridor. The Gwent Levels may contain the largest known population in the UK which includes  small  populations recorded in Trowbridge and  much larger populations  at Hendre Lake.

Shrill carder bee queens emerge from hibernation later than other species, in May. Nests are built on the ground or just below the surface in thick vegetation. The queen will produce a small colony of around 50-70 workers, which can normally be seen from mid-June onwards feeding on a range of plants, such as white dead-nettle, hedge woundwort, red clover and meadow vetchling. Towards the end of the summer the queen switches to producing males and daughter queens. After mating, the new queens find a hibernation spot, where they remain until the following year, while the old queen and her colony begin to die.