Photo by John Bokma
One early spring morning as I approached my office door, I spotted a huge black bumble bee on the ground. It had died in such a graceful state, that it inspired me to start a bug collection.
I showed the gorgeous specimen to my boss, who informed me that my bumble bee was actually a female carpenter bee. The way to tell a female carpenter bee from a bumble bee is to look at the abdomen. The abdomen of the carpenter bee is shiny with fringes of hairs on some segments. The bumble bee has a fuzzy abdomen.
The female carpenter bee is mostly solitary, and spends its days foraging for nectar among flowers. The male carpenter bee spends his time defending the home, although ironically he does not have a stinger, but his aggressive behavior wards off most would-be predators.
The bees make their home in wood that has depressions or cracks in it. This makes it easier for them to chew their tunnels, which can be up to 10 feet long! Here is a photo of both specimens from my collection:
If you would prefer not to have these bees living in wood near your home, avoid keeping extra wood near your house, and paint over depressions in wood-based structures. For more information, see UC publication:
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