Comments on: The Carpenter Bee and Her Mate

By: Kandie

Kandie — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 15:56:10 +0000

I am just now learning about carpenter bees. I have a small wood porch deck, and was sitting on the ground by it pulling weeds when this huge bee flew in front of my face and just hovered there, buzzing at me. I finally got the message that I was supposed to move, and when I scooted away from the porch, it flew into this perfectly round hole in the wood. There were wood shavings on the ground. I was fascinated by the whole thing, especially that a bee would hover in front of my face without trying to sting me, and have been watching the hole ever since. Since the little critters aren’t bothering me, I’m not going to bother them, and I can always replace the piece of wood.

By: Liz

Liz — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 03:11:31 +0000

A good source of info is the Wikipedia entry on carpenter bees (of course I think so, because I helped write it .
That yellow stuff is their poop. They poop as they fly out the hole. It’s yellow because they eat pollen. It won’t hurt anything, and washes off.

Carpenter bees can and do eventually hollow out wood they live in, but they are so charming to watch that if it isn’t structural wood, I ignore it. I’d rather have bees than a deck anyway!

cheers,
L.

By: Jessica

Jessica — Tue, 26 May 2009 17:38:11 +0000

Yeah i have carpenter bee really bad on my pouch but now i know they aren’t mean so i really don’t care but i just wonder if maybe someone can answer a question i have……the bee’s are flying around and spraying this yellow stuff all over my pouch what does that me and what is it? its kind of nasty to watch them do i mean it looks like it comes out of the stinger but i can’t find out what is is the internet hasn’t said anything about it…..

By: Tony Pieta

Tony Pieta — Wed, 13 May 2009 20:54:07 +0000

I had a problem with them 3 years back. they were tunneling like crazy into the header board above my garage door. The non-chemical (sort of) solution I chose (I too, have a well) was to spray the expanding foam that comes in a can into the holes. After it had hardened, i simply sliced it off with a utility knife and filled the last of the holes in with wood putty. Yes, it probably did kill a few of them, but i have at least one Pileated Woodpecker and several Red Headed’s, and i really did not want them poking holes all through my house looking for a snack.

By: Dave

Dave — Thu, 07 May 2009 17:13:53 +0000

They will not even land on wood treated with Cuprinal or Cu-Nap.

By: Birder’s Lounge » Blog Archive » Circus of the Spineless #38

Birder’s Lounge » Blog Archive » Circus of the Spineless #38 — Mon, 04 May 2009 08:17:28 +0000

[...] Daniel Brown-Biochemical Soul [...]

By: paul

paul — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 22:13:35 +0000

If they are burrowing into your property, I would not consider that “leaving you alone”. I just had to replace a very expensive deck due to extensive carpenter bee damage. I now seal them in or kill them every chance I get.

By: Noah

Noah — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 05:11:41 +0000

My wife and I have a female carpenter bee neighbor, too. She decided to make her home on our balcony, and we’re fine with that. In fact, we’re quickly becoming avid “bee-watchers”.

These bees are peaceful, interesting little animals. You shouldn’t kill the family of bees by sealing them in. They are leaving you alone, and you should do the same.

By: Biochemical Soul » Nature Walk #4.1 - Arthropods

Biochemical Soul » Nature Walk #4.1 - Arthropods — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 02:48:10 +0000

[...] If you haven’t seen it, you must check out my story from earlier today: The Carpenter Bee and Her Mate: A Heartwarming (and Dissapointing) Tale of Rescue. Eastern Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa [...]