Sponsor a Moss carder bumblebee

Aim

Be part of the movement to save one of the UK's rarest bumblebee species, the Moss carder bumblebee.

Help save one of the UK's rarest bumblebees

Once widespread in the UK, the Moss carder bumblebee (Bombus muscorum) is now in decline and found mostly in small, fragmented populations along the coast.

This velvety, reddish-gold bumblebee doesn't travel far from its nest to forage, so each nest relies on a relatively small area for food. 

This makes the Moss carder bumblebee especially vulnerable to habitat loss and fragmentation.

This bumblebee is also particularly as risk from climate change. It's a cool-weather loving species which thrives in colder, wetter environments. As temperatures rise and climate extremes continue to increase, the Moss carder bumblebee is being pushed closer to the brink of survival.

We urgently need your help to save the Moss carder bumblebee.

By sponsoring a Moss carder bumblebee, you’ll be supporting our work to increase our understanding of the needs of this bumblebee to guide the implementation of our conservation work.

Mark Ruskell, MSP, Nature Champion for the Moss Carder bee says:
“The Moss carder is one of our rarest bumblebees. As Nature Champion for the Moss Carder in the Scottish Parliament, I am proud to support the efforts of Bumblebee Conservation Trust to carry out a full species recovery review for the species, to better understand its needs and secure its future. Please consider donating what you can for our little friends the Moss carder bee.”

Rare species like the Moss carder bumblebee are at risk of extinction. But together, we can secure their future. 

Your donation is a lifeline - for them, for our ecosystems, and for future generations who deserve to experience a wild and vibrant world.

We’re their last chance. You’re their best hope.

Thank you!

Photo credits: Nikki Gammans, Pieter Haringsma

This project successfully funded on 30th September 2025