![]() Spraying vulnerable wood with one of the aforementioned insecticides will cause some bees to avoid drilling into treated surfaces. 5: Applying insecticide into a tunnel under construction.Ī more extensive treatment of wood surfaces may be helpful when large numbers of carpenter bees are attacking siding, shake roofs, decks, etc. This will deter future bees from using the old tunnels, as well as moisture intrusion and wood decay.įig. Then plug the entrance hole with a piece of wooden dowel coated with carpenter's glue, putty, or other suitable sealant. Leave the holes open for a few days after treatment to allow the bees to contact and distribute the insecticide throughout the nest tunnel. ![]() ![]() Liquid, aerosol or dust insecticides containing ingredients such as bifenthrin, cyfluthrin, deltamethrin or lambda cyhalothrin can be applied directly into tunnel openings. The best time to control carpenter bees is before tunnels are fully constructed. These insects seldom cause problems and are usually scavenging on remaining pollen or using the tunnels for shelter. Other types of small solitary bees and wasps are sometimes seen visiting abandoned carpenter bee nests. Female carpenter bees can inflict a painful sting but will seldom do so - unless they are handled or bothered by people. The males are harmless, however, since they lack the ability to sting. Male carpenter bees can be especially intimidating, hovering in front of people who are around nesting sites. Still, their presence can be daunting, especially during spring mating and nest construction. 4: Carpenter bees often repeatedly infest the same areas.Ĭarpenter bees are less inclined to sting than wasps and bees living in communal colonies. Holes in the wood surface also facilitate moisture intrusion, rot and decay.įig. Significant damage can occur when the same pieces of wood are infested year after year. Female carpenter bees excavate new tunnels in wood for egg laying, or enlarge and reuse old ones. Though seldom as destructive as termites, carpenter bees can cause cosmetic and structural damage. 3: Cross-section of wood showing carpenter bee tunnels and brood chambers. Later in the summer, the new generation of adult bees emerge and forage on flowers, returning to wood in the fall for hibernation.įig. Hatching and maturation occurs over several weeks, with the pollen serving as a food source for the developing larvae. Working back to front, the bee provisions each cell with pollen (collected from spring-flowering plants) and a single egg, sealing each successive chamber with regurgitated wood pulp. Inside the tunnel, about five or six cells are constructed for housing individual eggs. After boring in a short distance, the bee makes a right angle turn and continues to tunnel parallel to the wood surface. Coarse sawdust may be present below the opening, and tunneling sounds are sometimes heard within the wood. The entrance hole in the wood surface is perfectly round and about the diameter of your little finger. Fertilized female carpenter bees then bore into wood, excavating a tunnel to lay their eggs. ![]() Those that survive the winter emerge and mate the following spring. The adults overwinter individually, often in previously constructed brood tunnels. Biology and HabitsĬarpenter bees do not live in colonies like honeybees or bumblebees. 1: Carpenter bee with shiny abdomen (left), bumblebee (right). (Bumblebees usually have a hairy abdomen with black and yellow stripes.) The bees also have different nesting habits-bumblebees nest in an existing cavity often underground (e.g., in abandoned rodent burrows), whereas carpenter bees tunnel into wood to lay their eggs.įig. BumblebeesĬarpenter bees resemble bumblebees, but typically have a shiny, hairless abdomen. Common carpenter bee nesting sites include eaves, rafters, fascia boards, siding, wooden shake roofs, decks and outdoor furniture. Painted or pressure-treated wood is much less susceptible to attack. Carpenter bees prefer unpainted, weathered wood, especially softer varieties such as redwood, cedar, cypress and pine. These are likely to be carpenter bees, named for their habit of excavating holes in wood, in order to rear their young. University of Kentucky College of Agricultureĭuring the spring, people often notice large, black bees hovering around the outside of their homes. ENTFACT-611: Carpenter Bees | Download PDF by Michael F. ![]()
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