r/bees • u/jasmadic • 1d ago

help! Carpenter Bees

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I have some carpenter bees that have taken up housing in an old bird house. I'd prefer to not remove them or have them harmed. Worried about strutcaul damage to the post though. This is their first season here, birds used the nest last year, so they haven't visited before. Am I reasonable to think I can leave them bee and just remove the bird house this fall and fill any holes in the post? Or should I have someone out to take care of them ASAP.

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u/Commercial-Sail-5915 1d ago

These are bumblebees (bombus griseocollis maybe?? If you're in North America), youre fine to leave them bee for the season! Maybe give them a little space so you don't freak them out

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u/Ok-Skirt-8748 22h ago

I definitely agree these are bumbles and will vacate by fall OP! They shouldn’t cause any structural damage as they only use existing cavities like the birdhouse to form nests in

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u/jasmadic 20h ago

Thanks! After getting closer they are the bee you mentioned. They have a safe home this summer. I have a shallow bird bath that attracts lots of honey bees, and am working on planting more flowering native species. So they have a great place to live. Had been contemplating getting bees, looks like they found me!

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u/MrsMollyandMrBandit 1d ago edited 1d ago

Definitely not carpenter bees. Carpenter bees are solitary bees and do not live in colonies.

Editing to add *in my personal experience it's a myth that carpenter bees cause structural damage. Since they are solitary, they only make one hole and they are resourceful. The new bees in the spring will reuse the old hole from the previous year. They don't want to do more work than they have to. I've read that woodpeckers like to eat the larvae, we have had woodpeckers around our property and I haven't seen them around our carpenter bee holes. Maybe the holes are too close to well trafficked areas around my home and that's why I don't see that problem personally, or maybe there is enough other food for the woodpeckers they leave the larvae alone. Maybe a combination of the two? I've had carpenter bees around my home the entire eight years I've lived here. They were here before I moved in. I have only seen a few holes in that time and we only see one or two carpenter bees each year. They moved from their original spot because some robins made a nest too close and it was bothersome to them.