Bumblebees Behaviour And Ecology
By Dave Goulson

A Book Review

Bumblebees: Behaviour, Ecology, and Conservation is an excellent book written by world bumblebee expert, Professor Dave Goulson.

This is one of my favourite books, by one of my favourite scientists!

The book takes the reader through such topics as:

the bumblebee life cycle,
colony formation and behaviour of individual bumblebees within a colony,
finding a mate,
predators,
foraging,
bumblebees as pollinators, and
conservation issues.

Despite containing many scientific references, the book is surprisingly easy to read, and is one I refer to often whilst giving my talks.

Consequently, my own copy of this book is full of pencil underlines as well as book markers and a few folded corners!

Who Is This Book For?

In my view, this is an excellent book for conservation students and those studying related disciplines.

However, it is also a useful book for those merely seeking to know more about bumblebees specifically, whether this is for general interest or conservation reasons.

About Professor Goulson

Goulson has published many scientific papers about bumblebees, and has written a number of books.

One of the hallmarks of scientific papers and books written by him, in my view, is that he manages to convey scientific information to the reader in a style they can understand.

Goulson studied biology at the University of Oxford, England, and completed a PhD in butterly ecology at Oxford Brookes University.

He founded the Bumblebee Conservation Trust whilst a lecturer at the University of Stirling, Scotland. He now lectures at the University of Sussex, England, where he specialises in the ecology and conservation of bumblebees.

He was a contributer to the IUCN investigation into pesticides