365 Urban Species. #159: Carpenter Bee

[urbpan]

Photo by cottonmanifesto. Location: rose bushes in front of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.

Urban species #159: Carpenter bee Xylocopa virginica

Carpenter bees require exposed dead wood in which to excavate nests and lay their eggs. Fortunately for them, humans like to build with this substance, and so have greatly increased the amount of potential carpenter bee nest sites. The female chews her way into the wood, working with the grain whenever possible, and lays deposits her eggs, along with food packets of flower pollen and nectar, into the cavity.

Carpenter bees are considered both important pollinators and destructive pests. They can be frightening to some people, as they are quite large bees, but they are slow to rile and rarely sting. They are easy to confuse with bumblebees, which differ in that they are social, nest in the ground, and have yellow fur on their abdomen (carpenter bees have yellow fur only on their thoraxes, and have shiny black abdomens). Carpenter bees prefer to build nests in soft woods (mostly conifers), and so Boston's miles of blocks of triple-deckers made of eastern white pine provide abundant breeding space. And flowering ornamental shrubs and weeds are an ample supply of food for this urban species.






This carpenter bee circles through the stamens of this rose blossom, collecting pollen on its body.

Comments

[sin-agua.livejournal.com]

Our carpenter bees are all black, and they live in sotol and agave stalks we've provided for them on our back porch. When we last moved house, we just brought them along with us! :)

Most people are scared of them, but they've never stung us - not even the cats, and the cats would LOVE to catch one and try to eat it. They are curious, though, and have been known to "buzz" people, just hover very close and peer at them. ;)

We keep them because they're great pollinators and just because it's kinda neat to have them around and watch them.

[larksdream]

Most people are scared of them, but they've never stung us - not even the cats, and the cats would LOVE to catch one and try to eat it. They are curious, though, and have been known to "buzz" people, just hover very close and peer at them.

Those are the males, who are quite territorial... but ironically, they can't actually sting!

[sin-agua.livejournal.com]

So I've heard. :)

[momomom.livejournal.com]

My lovely friend Dr. Doyle in NJ has told me about these guys and I have since been enchanted with them. I love the way they stare you down!

[cowpewter.livejournal.com]

Ooh. I always wondered why some bumblebees around here were so "naked" looking. I guess they weren't bumblebees, heh.

[miekec]

I love to look at bees. Never really understand people that are so scared of them, since they basically never sting unprovoked. Freaking out and batting at them certainly is more provoking than standing still and looking at them :)
Of course, now I have to discourage my inquisitive animal-loving 3yr old from "petting" the bees.

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

I love to pet the bees!

[bezigebij.livejournal.com]

Love the shots of the bee going around the flower. :)

[dragonwrites.livejournal.com]

oh, i ♥ bees.

here's my bee journal, a little nonfiction piece about harvesting honey with an amateur beekeeper in southwest michigan.

Injured Carpenter Bee

[(Anonymous)]

My husband found a beautiful carpenter bee that has lost one wing crawling around on our porch - we put it on a towel and left it in our garage overnight figuring it would be dead by morning - however, she is quite lively and we fed her some honey and she is so beautiful. We love all creatures of God and my husband is beside himself because we do not know what to do to help this little bee - does anyone know what can be done for her -- we are heartbroken because we wonder if we should put it
out of its misery or just let nature take its course.
If anyone knows what to do - please write to us - thank you!

Nursing a Carpenter Bee

[(Anonymous)]

How do you take care of a carpenter bee with a broken
wing - we feed it honey and it has lived for two days, but she is getting weak. What do we do?