Data shows 2024 was the worst year for bumblebees in the UK since records began, with numbers falling by nearly a quarter compared to the 2010-2023 average, according to the Bumblebee Conservation Trust.

Researchers attributed the decline to unusually cold and wet weather during spring.

The Met Office reported that many parts of the UK experienced more than double or triple the typical rainfall during March, April, and May. This extreme weather coincided with the bumblebees’ most vulnerable period—the colony establishment stage—when queen bumblebees must independently feed themselves, nurture their larvae, and incubate the nest.

The UK’s 24 bumblebee species are essential for pollinating crops and wildflowers, making their decline a serious ecological concern.

Species that peak in June and July were particularly affected. Observations of white-tailed and red-tailed bumblebees, two common species, decreased by 60% and 74%, respectively. Other species facing significant declines included the garden bumblebee, tree bumblebee, southern cuckoo bumblebee, and buff-tailed bumblebee.

Although improved weather conditions in July and August allowed for a partial recovery, these months still recorded the second-lowest bumblebee counts since the trust began monitoring in 2011.

Dr. Richard Comont, science manager at the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, emphasised that the already declining bumblebee population faces additional challenges from changing weather patterns.

“We’ve got smaller, weaker populations of a lot of these bumblebees because of long-term habitat changes. We know that bumblebees were struggling anyway and smaller weaker populations are less able to respond to changes, they don’t have that resilience.

“Although there’s loads of bumblebees in midsummer, they all come from very small numbers that emerge from hibernation in the spring.”

He highlighted the importance of expanding conservation efforts, restoring habitats, and maintaining long-term monitoring to protect bumblebee populations. Comont also noted that individuals can play a role in supporting bumblebees.

“The key thing is having big populations because big populations are resilient populations. All of the stuff you see about planting flowers in your garden, letting wildflowers grow, not using pesticides; all of that standard advice around increasing pollinator populations, not just bumblebees, that will allow us to have larger populations of pollinators.”