I was wondering who was making all those half circle patterns in the morning glory leaves. I suspected a leaf cutter bee, but it took awhile for me to actually spot one in action. Today I noticed a bee kept returning to the same vine to collect leaf bits, so I parked myself there for awhile and took some photos.
For the past few evenings I’ve noticed this carpenter bee napping in the escallonia bush. She might snooze for a half hour or so, then she’s on her way again.
Even the busiest bees need to take a break now and then.
This is a male valley carpenter bee. I normally only see the all black females here, so this is a rare sighting in my yard. The valley carpenter bee is the biggest bee in California. The females can get really huge. The males are typically not as big; however, they are still fairly imposing. This one was definitely bigger than all the other bees around at the time, and he was clambering all over the escallonia like the bee version of Godzilla, knocking off petals and pollen, and shaking off the ants. The escallonia is like crack for bees, so I’m betting he’ll be back!
Actually, I was taking a photo of the tiny bee on the marigold. It’s SO tiny! I thought it was a fly at first. I have no idea what kind of bee this is.
It was tough to get a photo of this speedy little bee, and she’s a bit blurry here. She tried out various tubes all afternoon in between trips to gather more pollen, but unfortunately I haven’t seen her since. I don’t know if she laid any eggs before she disappeared.
Not really, he’s a carpenter bee. A mountain or foothill carpenter bee – either name applies. I live in the valley, and I usually see valley carpenter bees in my yard. The valley bees are much bigger, but this guy will bonk right into them. He chases the hummingbird too.
My dad made this sweet house for the mason bees out of a wine box.
One of the mason bee hatchlings came by for a visit yesterday. I had to fish the little guy out of a water dish! I’ve added pebbles to it, so he’ll have something to climb onto if he should fall in again. I think he was here looking for a girl bee, but they are all still sleeping in their cocoons – hopefully they’ll come out soon!
It was super windy today, the kind of wind that knocks trees down and snaps telephone poles, so my plans to hang up this bee house were put on hold. Once the weather is nicer I’ll select a good spot for this house and put out the welcome mat.
