African Twig Girdler vs American Bumble Bee

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute African Twig Girdler American Bumble Bee
Scientific Name Analeptes trifasciata Bombus pensylvanicus
Order Coleoptera Hymenoptera
Family Cerambycidae Apidae
Size 20-35 mm 15-25 mm
Habitat Farmland Farmland
Diet Wood Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions West Africa, Central Africa, East Africa Eastern and central United States, now declining across its range
Conservation Least Concern Vulnerable

African Twig Girdler

A distinctive African lamiin known for its habit of girdling living tree branches. The female chews a ring around a branch and lays eggs in the portion beyond the girdle, which then dies and falls. Adults have three pale fasciae across the elytra.

💡

Did You Know?

Girdled branches litter the ground beneath infested trees, and a single female may girdle dozens of branches in her lifetime.

American Bumble Bee

A large bumble bee with a yellow thorax, black band between the wings, and a mostly yellow abdomen. Once one of the most common bumble bees in North America, it has experienced significant population declines.

💡

Did You Know?

Its populations have declined by nearly 90 percent in some regions, prompting conservation concern across its entire range.