Rusty Patched Bumble Bee (Bombus affinis)
Status: Endangered
Just 20 years ago, the rusty patched bumble bee was a common sight, so ordinary that it went almost unnoticed as it moved from flower to flower, collecting nectar and pollen. But it's now balancing precariously on the brink of extinction and has become the first-ever bumble bee in the United States -- and the first bee of any kind in the contiguous 48 states -- to be declared endangered.
What you can do!
Grow flowers, including flowering trees and shrubs. Have a mix with something in bloom from early spring through fall. Include native milkweeds for monarch butterflies.
Bumble bees and many other pollinators (bees, moths and butterflies) need a safe place to build their nests and overwinter. Leave some areas of your yard unmowed in summer and unraked in fall, in your garden and flower beds leave some standing plant stems in winter.
Provide a pesticide free environment.
Bumble Bee Conservation by the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
Find out more »
The endangered designation means that the rusty patched bumble bee is in danger of becoming extinct throughout all or a portion of its range. Service Midwest Regional Director Tom Melius said, “Our top priority is to act quickly to prevent extinction of the rusty patched bumble bee. Listing the bee as endangered will help us mobilize partners and focus resources on finding ways right now to stop the decline.”
Once common and abundant across 28 states from Connecticut to South Dakota, the District of Columbia and two Canadian provinces, the rusty patched bumble bee has experienced a swift and dramatic decline since the late 1990s. Abundance of the rusty patched bumble bee has plummeted by 87 percent, leaving only a few small, scattered populations in 13 states and one province.
News Release
Final Listing Rule: Federal Register January 11, 2017 
Literature Cited in Final Rule
Questions and Answers
Rusty Patched Bumble Bee (Bombus affinis) Species Status Assessment (June 2016)
Fact Sheet
Life History
Excerpted from the Final Listing Rule
Excerpted from the Species Status Assessment
Current Range: IL, IN, IA, ME, MD, MA, MN, NC, OH, PA, TN, VA, WI and Ontario, Canada
Have you seen a rusty patched bumble bee?
Bumble Bee Watch - Bumble Bee Watch is a citizen science project to track and conserve North America’s bumble bees. The site provides useful identification information.
The Rusty Patched Bumble Bee: the story of a declining pollinator links to the Xerces Society
Archives - Chronological list of previous Federal Register publications and associated information
Species of Concern
Midwest Endangered Species
