Short-haired bumblebee numbers on the rise in the UK

Species declared locally extinct in 2000 is making a comeback as new sightings suggest queen bees brought from Sweden have successfully nested

New sightings of short-haired bumblebees show a scheme to reintroduce the vanished species to the UK is proving successful, conservationists have said.

Three short-haired bumblebee workers were spotted at the RSPB's Dungeness nature reserve in Kent, where the reintroduction scheme is taking place, on four consecutive days.