![]() For more information on carpenter bee biology and management, download this K-State publication Structural Pests: Carpenter Bees. While carpenter bees are not social bees, populations may build up in favorable locations and over years of repeated excavating, can weaken structural wood. The next generation of adults typically does not become active until the following spring. The larvae feed on these provisions throughout the summer, and then pupate. These females will then excavate new holes or extend established ones located in older, untreated, unpainted wood where they provision cells with nectar and pollen and then deposit eggs. Males Dont Sting Male carpenter bees, which are the ones with all the bluster, do not sting at all. But before you reach for a can of bug spray, you should know that its very unlikely youll be stung by one. This dive bombing behavior will continue until all the new females have mated, then the males will die and the noticeable activity will cease. Debbie Hadley Updated on NovemCarpenter bees can be aggressive, and nobody likes getting stung by a bee. These males cannot sting they are just very territorial because they are waiting for a female bee to emerge from one of the holes in the wood so they can mate with her. This means that wood bees (carpenter bees) can drill holes into wooden areas around your home, such as inside roof eaves or wooden siding. Some small species of mason bees also nest in crevices, hollow stems, or holes in wood. They drill into wood to create their nests. ![]() It is the males that are buzzing intruders and they can be distinguished by their ‘bald faces’ which appear to have a yellow triangle in the middle of a black face. The name wood bees is a colloquial term for carpenter bees, a type of bee known for drilling holes in wood. But, if you have large black and yellow bees hovering around any wooden structures and they are "dive bombing" or buzzing around people who have intruded into their area, i.e. Most folks do not want to get close enough to any large bee to make these distinctions, and they are even more difficult to distinguish when they are flying. Carpenter bees thus have shiny, dark blue to black abdomens while most bumble bees have hairy yellow abdomens. However, carpenter bees, even though they are about the same size and fly at about the same speed, have bare abdomens while bumble bees have hairy abdomens. These large (3/4 to 7/8 inch) black and yellow bees are most often mistaken for bumble bees. ![]() Return to Natural Resources Agent ArticlesĬarpenter Bees are most very active in the spring. ![]()
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