Just this week one of our regular clients was chopping some dead branches down and using them for fire wood, she was surprised (and horrified) to find bees flying out of the branches in her hand. This wouldn’t normally be so alarming but for someone who is allergic to bee stings and requires a shot of epinephrine to prevent heart failure, having 8 bees fly out of the hollowed out branch in your hand would be worrisome to say the least. Our client had a carpenter bee nest in her garden, needless to say there wasn’t much our technician could do but to advise to stay away while the dead branches are cut away and taken off the property.
It’s often you get called to jobs like these and we were thrilled to have one of the dead branches that had been hollowed out by the carpenter bee family. Inspired by the incredible feat, we decided to post a 101 article on the Great Carpenter Bee so enjoy!
Carpenter Bees
Australia plays host to over 1600 species of native bee and the Great Carpenter Bee is one of the larger species. There are a few different sub-genus but basically you have the black and yellow carpenter bee or the green carpenter bee. They are widely dispersed across the east coast and enjoy warmer temperatures.
Carpenter Bees are so named after their astounding ability to carve through dead timbers to create their nests. The female carpenter bee vibrate their mandibles and body through the timber to create tunnels and lays her fertilised eggs on individual mounds of honey and pollen, she then seals the tunnels with chewed up wood, creating “brood cells”. Carpenter Bees are ‘para-social’ which means there could be several generations in a single nest, unlike many other native bees which keep solitary nests (meaning only 1 generation of bees).
Like many species of bee, The Great Carpenter Bee enjoys a diet of pollen. Carpenter bees are know as “buzz pollinators” which means they vibrate their wings and bodies at a particular frequency to almost shock the pollen out of a flowers anthers. The female bee lands on a flower, curls herself around the anthers and vibrates her flight muscles and buzzes loudly. The frequency of the buzz is audibly different from flying. The rapid movements loosen the pollen which flows out through the holes in the anthers in a fine spray on to the bee’s body.
These are truly amazing creatures and one thing we love at Results Home Services is the opportunity to teach and share what we know. Having been looking after and protecting Brisbane homes from pests like termites, rodents, bed bugs and cockroaches we have the knowledge and experience to protect you and your family from unwanted pests.
Have a pest problem? Call Results Home Services now on 3823 2500 and speak to one of our fully trained, friendly staff about the solutions we can offer you. We service all of Brisbane including Brisbane’s Northside and Southside suburbs like Eatons Hill, Grange, Bulimba, Sunnybank and Kenmore.
