Bees & Wasps

· Bees and wasps are actually beneficial social insects

· Bees have fuzzy / hairy bodies; wasps don't. Bees feed on pollen and nectar from flowers. Wasps usually feed on other insects or spiders.

· Bees can only sting one time because they have a barbed stinger, which pulls out the stinger, poison gland and guts. Wasps are able to sting repeatedly since they do not have a barbed stinger.

Some of their species include:

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Paper Wasps

· Paper wasps receive their name from the paper-like nest they build. These nests can be found under the eaves of houses, under branches of trees and shrubs, under decks or inside pipes.

· Paper wasps do not have a caste system with a sterile worker class. There is one dominant female, which lays eggs, and the others tend to the young. The dominant female is usually the nest initiator.

· This species of wasps is variable in color. They can be brown, black, orange or yellow. In addition, their bodies may or may not have stripes.

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Honey Bees:

· Honey bees are very important in pollination of crops.

· Honey bees are social insects that live in colonies. There is a queen that is responsible for producing eggs. The worker caste is made up of sterile females who build and repair the nest, forage for food and tend to the young. Males are called drones and are produced for mating with reproductive females.

· Honey bees are small and fuzzy. They are usually yellow and black striped

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Carpenter Bees

Carpenter bees get their common name from their habit of boring into wood to make galleries for the rearing of young. These are worldwide in distribution with 7 species occurring in the United States.

Adult body length about 1/2-1 (12.5-25 mm); robust in form, resembling bumble bees, but with top surface of abdomen largely bare and shining. Hind tibiae with apical spurs. Front wing 2nd submarginal cell triangular; hind wing with a small jugal lobe (lobe on rear margin near body).

Females of the carpenter bee will nest in a wide range of woods, but prefer weathered and unpainted wood. Valley carpenter bees prefer partially decayed live oak, deciduous oak, eucalyptus, and other hardwoods. The California carpenter bee nests in incense cedar and redwoods. The Mountain carpenter bee is recorded as nesting in structural timbers.

Male carpenter bees tend to be territorial and often become aggressive when humans approach, sometimes hovering a short distance in front of the face or buzzing one's head. Since males have no stinger, these actions are merely show. However, the female does have a potent sting which is rarely used.