Bombus rufocinctus, f, back clean, PA, Erie Co

Let us present the first record of Bombus rufocinctus for the state of Pennsylvania. This is a not uncommon northern and western species....it just hasn't been found in PA as of yet. Some notes on its identification. It has very short face compared to other bumbles...a little light colored topknot of pale hairs above the ocelli...and very variable abdominal hair patterns...nearly all varieties of hair patterns can occur in a single colony of bumble bees...just to irritate biologists. Pictures by Greta Forbes. Bee capture by the state of Pennsylvania in Eire County. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200 USGSBIML Photoshopping Technique: Note that we now have added using the burn tool at 50% opacity set to shadows to clean up the halos that bleed into the black background from "hot" color sections of the picture.