The abdomen of a carpenter bee is black, shiny, and hairless-sometimes called a patent leather butt. Often confused with bumble bees, carpenter bees can be easily distinguished by looking at their abdomens.
#Fuzzy black bee series
The female rasps an entrance hole, then constructs a series of connecting chambers, or galleries, where she will lay a single egg atop a loaf of nectar and pollen.Eastern Carpenter Bee ( Xylocopa virginica)Ĭarpenter bees are the largest native bees in the United States, along with bumblebee queens.
Their preferred nesting site is old, bare wood.
#Fuzzy black bee plus
Females will sting, but only when roughly handled or aggressively provoked.Ī solitary species, a single female does all the work of nest construction, plus collecting pollen and nectar for her eggs. Known for their docile nature, males are stingless, but like to hover near intruders. Bumblebees have abdomens covered with dense, short hair while carpenter abdomens are bare and may have a metallic sheen to them.Ĭarpenters also have wider heads compared to bumblebees. The easiest way to visually distinguish between them is by looking at their abdomens. There are also species with iridescent wings, and brightly colored body hair of blue or green.īecause of their similarity in size and coloring to large bumblebees, the two species are often confused. They measure approximately 1/2 to 1 inch in length with mostly black wings and bodies, plus stripes of yellow or orange. Carpenters ( Xylocopa)Ĭarpenters belong to the genus Xylocopa with seven species found in Canada and the US. Nests should be left undisturbed whenever possible. According to the Xerces Society, more than one-quarter of all species face a significant risk level of extinction. However, our native bumblebees are under siege. Before winter, the new queens mate before finding a safe, sheltered spot to sleep away the cold weather. The colony grows quickly over the summer, with as many as two hundred workers, although a number closer to one hundred is the norm.Īll the female workers, male drones, and the old queen die by summer’s end the only survivors are the new generation of queens. This is why you rarely see the really big buzz-bombs after spring – they’re at home, laying eggs.įemales born after the first brood are not sterile and mate soon after emerging from the nest, adding more workers and drones.
Workers are usually smaller than the queen. Once the first batch has grown, she spends the remainder of her time laying more eggs while the workers tend to housekeeping chores and collect pollen. She lays her first brood of about six eggs on top of this mix – these will grow to be the sterile female workers. She also constructs a larger pot that gets stocked with a mixture of pollen and nectar. Once a site has been chosen, the queen constructs a few wax pots that she tops up with honey, to sip from while she tends her eggs. Commonly Confused Backyard Species Bumblebees ( Bombus)īumblebees belong to the Apidae family in the genus Bombus, and North America is home to approximately 50 species – most folks will be familiar with at least some of them.īumblebees (Bombus) nesting on top of the ground in vegetation. Most species are short lived, lasting only one season – just long enough to mate, nest, and lay eggs. The nectar the adults sip provides a high-octane fuel, and mothers will often collect enough to mix in with their stash of pollen to form “loaves” to lay their eggs on. And they’re particularly adapted for the reproduction of native plants, such as blueberries, cranberries, squash, and tomatoes.įlying from flower to flower, they collect loose pollen on their body fur, cover their legs with it (creating what are referred to as “pollen pants”), or groom it into pollen baskets on their legs or tummies.Ī naturally abundant source of protein, the collected pollen is used as a food source for the larvae that are growing in brood chambers. But, there are always exceptions!Ī key player in most ecosystems, they have a vital role in pollinating all blossoming plants, from food crops to wildflowers. Unlike honeybees, which were imported by European settlers in the 1620s, most native species are socially solitary, nest in underground chambers, and produce no honey.
With over 4,000 species, native North American bees can be found anywhere that flowers bloom. Understanding Common Ground and Wood Nesting Bees
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