This creature is more likely to be a queen buff-tailed bumble bee – Bombus terrestris – often the earliest queen to emerge from overwintering. It is more likely to be a queen buff-tailed bumble bee – Bombus terrestris – often the earliest queen to emerge from overwintering. Photograph: Frank Mc NamaraI found this stranger on our windowsill last August in Ballyhea (North Cork). It is a pity that the photo doesn’t show the critical feature - the stem/stipe - which is blackish in this species. Normally it grows on dead wood, but it has also been recorded on living trees, which were most likely moribund.

Source: The Irish Times March 21, 2026 06:09 UTC