Bees
Advanced
Pest Control
What do they look like?
There are two main groups of bees in this country, social
and solitary.
Solitary bees are by far the largest group with over 200
species. In this country they have such a varied lifestyle
that it would not be possible to cover them all in this
leaflet. Therefore, we will try to explain the life cycle
of mortar, mining and bumblebees only.
Mortar / Mining Bees
Both these species of bees vary in size and colour and are
generally hairy. They look much like Honeybees.
Bumblebees
Bumblebees differ form other bees in that they lead social
lives, with many adults living and working in a single nest.
Bumblebees seen in the garden in early spring have been
hibernating during the winter. They are all young Queens
who will spend the next few weeks eating pollen and nectar
before seeking nesting sites.
How do you spot them?
Solitary bees nest close together giving the impression
of communal life, however, each female lives alone. Mortar
bees excavate a chamber approximately 20mm deep in soft
mortar joints in brick walls, whereas mining bees excavate
chambers in the soft sandy soil of lawns and gardens. The
chamber is stocked with pollen and nectar and eggs are laid.
The chamber is then sealed.
Most bumblebees make their nests on or under the ground
taking over old nests of mice and voles. South facing hedge
banks are favourite sites.
How do they affect me?
Bees are regarded as beneficial insects. Their collection
of pollen from flowering plants is of great value by assisting
in the evolution and distribution of flowers by transferring
pollen from one to another. Many bumblebee and mining/solitary
bee species are rare or endangered and actually have Biodiversity
Action Plans to try to maintain and restore populations.
How do they live?
Solitary bees eggs hatch to produce a larvae, which feeds
on the pollen and nectar before pupating. The pupae hatch
to produce a bee. This process may take a whole year to
complete and the parent will have died before the offspring
emerge.
Adult mining and mortar bees only live for a short time
each year normally from April-July. These bees often get
confused with wasps in the early spring. However they are
not aggressive and do not sting.
The bumblebee Queen constructs a chamber of fine grass
and other material. She secretes a wax from glands on her
abdomen to make a small cup like cell in the centre of the
nest. The Queen partly fills the cell with pollen and lays
a number of eggs in it before roofing it over with more
wax. At the same time the Queen makes a wax honey pot in
which to store honey for when she is unable to forage due
to bad weather. As soon as the eggs hatch the Queen opens
the cell to provide the grub with more pollen and honey.
The grubs pupate in a silken cocoon and approximately one
month after the eggs are laid adults emerge. These new bees
are all females, smaller than the Queen and their reproductive
systems are not fully developed. They are the workers. The
Queen remains in the nest after this and busies herself
by making more egg cells and laying more eggs. Several batches
of workers are produced in this way during the summer and
the bee colony may grow to more than 300 workers.
After a time the Queen's ability to lay eggs falls off
and fewer larvae are produced. The ratio or workers to larvae
increases so that they get more food. The extra food causes
these larvae to develop into new Queens instead of workers.
At the same time the Queen lays some unfertilised which
although develop in the normal way give rise to male bees.
Males and females leave the nest to mate. The males will
die shortly afterwards. The fertilised Queen will then find
somewhere to hibernate over winter. The old Queen and workers
will all die by the end of the summer leaving the hibernating
Queen to continue the species for another year.
How do you control them?
Bumblebees are not aggressive providing they are well left
alone. It is unwise to destroy bees without first considering
an alternative method of control.
|
