Autumn Snowflake vs Common Eastern Bumble Bee

Acis autumnalis compared with Bombus impatiens

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Autumn Snowflake	Common Eastern Bumble Bee
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Liliopsida (Monocots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Asparagales (Asparagales)	Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees & Wasps)
Family	Amaryllidaceae	Apidae (Bees)
Genus	Acis	Bombus
Species	Acis autumnalis	Bombus impatiens

Conservation Status

Autumn Snowflake

LC — Least Concern

Common Eastern Bumble Bee

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Autumn Snowflake	Common Eastern Bumble Bee
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Autumn Snowflake

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

Range

Found in Norway.

Common Eastern Bumble Bee

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Mexico and United States.

Autumn Snowflake

The Autumn Snowflake (Acis autumnalis) is a species in the genus Acis. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

Common Eastern Bumble Bee

<em>Bombus impatiens</em>, the common eastern bumble bee, is a native North American bee in the family Apidae, classified as Least Concern by the IUCN Red List. The species is distributed across Mexico and the United States, typically inhabiting virtually all terrestrial and freshwater biomes within its range, from urban gardens and agricultural landscapes to forests, meadows, and wetland edges. As one of the most abundant and ecologically important pollinators in eastern North America, <em>Bombus impatiens</em> plays a critical role in the pollination of both wild plants and commercial crops, including tomatoes, peppers, and blueberries. It is among the most widely used bumble bee species for commercial greenhouse pollination globally. The species forms annual colonies founded by a single mated queen in early spring, with worker populations typically peaking in midsummer before new queens and males are produced in late summer. Common eastern bumble bees are capable of buzz pollination, or sonication, vibrating their flight muscles at a specific frequency to release pollen from anthers that resist wind or conventional bee pollination. While currently assessed as Least Concern, habitat loss, pesticide exposure, and pathogen spillover from commercial colonies are ongoing concerns for wild populations. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.