I remember my dad actually petting one that was busy collecting nectar from one of our garden plants, with his bare finger. I've never been brave enough to repeat that particular experiment but my experience too is that bumblebees are usually very docile.
The only time I've ever heard of someone getting a bumblebee sting is when they actually got one caught inside their shirt and got three or four good zaps. They are like wasps in that their stingers don't fall out when they sting, so they can keep going as long as they have venom left.
Apparently they are somewhat less docile when it comes to other bees, apparently they can be fairly aggressive and too many bumblebees around can outcompete local honeybees.
The only time I've ever heard of someone getting a bumblebee sting is when they actually got one caught inside their shirt and got three or four good zaps. They are like wasps in that their stingers don't fall out when they sting, so they can keep going as long as they have venom left.
Apparently they are somewhat less docile when it comes to other bees, apparently they can be fairly aggressive and too many bumblebees around can outcompete local honeybees.