Foggie-toddler

Spring has arrived at Stuckenduff, with the first sighting of the year of a Bumble Bee.

This a Queen Buff-tailed BumbleBee (Bombus terrestris), one of 16 species to be found in Scotland. She has spent the winter hibernating underground, as the only surviving member of her small colony.

Queens emerge in early spring and are keen to feed on nectar rich flowers like my Crocus' here. She will then build a nest and create a new colony of worker bees.

The Gaelic name for them is 'Seillean-mor', but I like the old Scots dialect for them 'Foggie-toddler', from fog meaning moss or grass, and toddling meaning to meander with a gentle sound.