About solitary bees

Superfamily: Bee

Did you know that
unlike honeybees, solitary bees do not live in colonies and since they do not have a colony to protect they have not developed a poisonous sting, making solitary bees one of the kindest members of the bee family! Solitary bee is the name given to a group of several species that do not produce honey or live in a colony and includes mason bees, yellow-faced bees, leafcutter bees, hairy-footed bees and wool carder bees. Every female is fertile unlike social bees that share colonies.

Pollinating

Solitary bees work hard at pollinating berry bushes and fruit trees, which means that a garden with plenty of solitary bees will have a rich harvest of fruit and berries. The females and larvae mainly eat pollen while the males only eat nectar, but both males and females pollinate plants as they fly from flower to flower, from stamen to pistil, which is how a flower is fertilized and becomes a fruit or berry.

Habitat

Solitary bees normally live in holes in dead trees or the ground. The bee population is, however, in decline, which could be a result of a reduction in natural habitats. By putting up a bee box you are contributing towards giving this threatened species a better chance of survival. A bee box consists of bamboo canes or drilled holes in a piece of wood and provides the females with a place to lay her eggs and store pollen.

Life cycle

When the female has laid her eggs inside a cane she seals off the entrance. The pollen that is also stored in the cane is a source of food for the larvae. When the eggs hatch the larvae live in the cane for about 5-10 weeks before pupating. Most solitary bees spend the winter as pupae and are hatched in time for summer, but there are species that spend winter in their nests as adult bees. They can spend up to 9 months there until the sun has well and truly heated up.