Do pollinators come out in winter?

I noticed that some crocuses were open today, and that they have a lot of pollen. I have wondered for a long time how winter flowers get pollinated if all the bees and other pollinators are hibernating. I especially wonder how cyclamen get pollinated as they flower right through from autumn to spring.

 

The bumblebees are around for most of the winter here, even when it's frosty. As long as there's some sun, they don't seem to suffer.

 

Bumble bees can be active down to 6 or 7°C , prefer sunny calm days though.
See here The Bumblebee Body: Temperature Regulation and honeystomach
Crocuses need to at about 10°C to open fully, if you get down you will find, that like cyclamen, they smell of honey.
Other small wasps, bees and flies are also active on sunny winter days and can often be seen in/on flowers.
There is also the Ivy bee (relative newcomer to UK) that feeds on Ivy flowers in autumn and winter, think it only emerges around October.

 

We have Bumble Bees here, yesterday in particular I saw quite a few ,some were sunbathing in the sunshine on the brick walls of our house.

 

No bees around here yet, but it's the reason that it's good practice to have early flowers, and crocus are a good example, as they provide nectar for any early pollinators. Other insects pollinate too as has been said already in the discussion. The little species tulips are also very good for those early pollinating insects.

 

Yes, we had one outside our window yesterday. Frosty but bright sunshine.

 

@NigelJ, that is useful information that Crocuses need to be 10 degrees Celsius to open fully. Part of my garden gets a lot of shade and up until today I was thinking that the Prince Claus crocuses that I planted in this area last autumn wouldn't open, as for about a week I have just had a lot of closed flowers. I have a garden thermometer that has mostly been reading between about 8 and 10 degrees Celsius during the middle of the day for the past couple of weeks, and today it is reading 11 degrees Celsius, and my Prince Claus crocuses are partly open, today for the first time. In an other area of my garden that gets more light my Crocuses have been fully open for about a week now, including the Prince Claus ones.

I had been thinking that for next year I would need to move the Prince Claus crocuses in the shady area to somewhere that gets more sun. This area is warm but doesn't have much light. But maybe they will open fully as the temperature warms up.

 

I saw my first bumble bee yesterday it was huge

 

I've noticed the bumblebees this year seem to be the same size as a nissan micra....with the flying skills of a ford escort!

 

I saw my first butterfly of the year yesterday, and lots of bees about on our winter honeysuckle and sweet box plants. It was so warm in the sunshine which has brought them out I think ☀

 

Certainly warm sun encourages everything to be active.
Also a bit like the American UFOs once you start looking they are everywhere.

 

I've only seen mozzies here on warmer days.

 

my first car was a nissan micra lol

 

What did it fly like?