Old Bombus pascuorum worker foraging

Just uploaded this photograph of an old worker to the Pascuorum page. I can see that she is fairly old by the wear to the edges of her wings. I took it at the edge of the woods near a broken down old dry stone wall, and beyond that there was a grain field. This is a very typical pasuorum habitat.

Of all the six common bumblebees I believe this one is hardest hit by modern farming as it often nests in tussocky grass at the edges of fields. If the farmer cuts early for silage he will destroy the nests that have just become established. Cutting later will also do damage, but with luck a well populated nest can be repaired.

Huge icicles hanging outside my windows today, and no chance of getting the car out - not that I want to go anywhere. Luckily our gutters are still there even though we have icicles down the insides of them as well as the outside. My neighbour's gutters have come down. There must be a better way of doing the guttering so that it doesn't impede the snow sliding off the roof.

However it is not all bad. The snow prevents me from gardening, but I do curl up on the sofa with the dog and read. Last night I finished E M Delafield's The provincial lady in America. Hilarious like all the others