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Cuckoo bumblebees are members of the subgenus Psithyrus in the bumblebee genus Bumblebee. Until the 1990s, Psithyrus was considered to constitute a separate genus.Williams, P. H. 1991. The bumble bees of the Kashmir Himalaya (Hymenoptera: Apidae, Bombini). Bull. Brit. Mus. Nat. Hist. Entomol. 60: 1–204.Williams, P.H. 1994. Phylogenetic relationships among bumblebees ( Bombus Latr.): A reappraisal of morphological evidence. Systematic Entomology 19: 327-344. They are a specialized socially parasitic lineage which parasitises the nests of 'true' bumblebees; they do not collect pollen or establish their own nests. Cuckoo bumblebees do not create a worker caste and produce only male and female reproductives. They are considered inquilines in the colonies of 'true' bumblebees.
Cuckoo bumblebee females emerge from hibernation later than their host species to ensure that their host has had sufficient time to establish a nest. Before finding and invading a host colony, a Psithyrus female feeds directly from flowers until her ovaries are sufficiently developed, at which time she begins seeking a nest to invade. Once she has located and infiltrated a host colony, the Psithyrus female nest usurpation by killing or subduing the host queen. She then lays her own eggs, exploiting the host workers to feed her and her developing young through pheromones and/or physical attacks.
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