Large Garden Bumble Bee vs Cabbage Moth

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Large Garden Bumble Bee Cabbage Moth
Scientific Name Bombus ruderatus Mamestra brassicae
Order Hymenoptera Lepidoptera
Family Apidae Noctuidae
Size 14-24 mm Wingspan 34-50mm
Habitat Farmland Farmland
Diet Nectar Feeders Herbivores
Regions Europe, New Zealand, South America Europe, Asia
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Large Garden Bumble Bee

A long-tongued bumble bee introduced to New Zealand in the early 1900s to pollinate red clover. They have one of the longest tongues of any bumble bee species.

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Did You Know?

They were intentionally shipped from England to New Zealand because they were the only bees with tongues long enough to pollinate red clover.

Cabbage Moth

A mottled grey-brown moth with kidney-shaped and circular stigmata on the forewings. Its caterpillar is a serious pest of brassica crops worldwide.

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Did You Know?

A single caterpillar can bore deep into a cabbage head contaminating it with frass and making it unmarketable.