Sweat bees are nesting in my yard
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...
Planted by: Jennifer Tidwell
Date: Friday April 24, 2009
Planted in: Habitat Project
I found a group of what I thought were ant hills and earthworm castings on the edge of my driveway the other day. Upon closer inspection, I saw a sweat bee emerging from one of them! I began to suspect there was more to the story and told my daughter not to disturb the small mounds.
When I got home this afternoon, there were probably one hundred or so bees hovering around the same area. There were also tiny black ants marching in and out of the same holes. My question is this: Are the ants using the sweat bee nests, or are the sweat bees using the ant nests?
Here are a few pictures I managed to take.
I don’t know enough about these bees to identify them, but the small amount of research I’ve done says that these bees usually nest in a colony. Now I have to figure out how to keep the area relatively undisturbed. The clover and other wild flowers I’m planting will be a buffet right in their backyard.
I’m thrilled! These bees are apparently prolific pollinators, and don’t discriminate when it comes to choosing a flower (polylectic). When I get fruit trees and blueberry bushes planted, these guys will be my best friends.
Possibly Related Posts:
Line and paragraph breaks automatic, e-mail address never displayed, HTML allowed: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>
