Have you seen many holes in the trees or unpainted wood around your house? Does it concern you to see those things? Blame it all on carpenter bees because they are the ones who caused that damage. Carpenter bees do not live in the hive but they boreholes on dead woods, bamboos, unpainted wood, or another area where woods are unpainted. They look the same as the bumblebees but to determine the difference, bumblebees have black abdomens with yellow hairs. They have the ability to make tunnels at about 10 feet in some areas. The female carpenter bee only possesses the ability to sting, unlike honeybees where both male and female bees sting.
Although the holes in the woods are disturbing, this is not a cause of alarm but if you want to eliminate these bees, you can certainly do so.
Do Carpenter Bees Sting?
No one would like to be stung by anything especially a bee. It hurts, it may get swollen, and you may even get several complications depending on the bee that stung you. Everyone does their best in order to know about bees and what to do when they are around. And one question that had been asked is that do all bees sting? Well, there is also another question which is, do carpenter bees sting? Carpenter bees are amazing little creatures in the genus Xylocopa within the Xylocopinae subfamily. They are hairy and huge bees that can be found almost everywhere in the world.
Basically, one can identify a carpenter bee from the looks of a carpenter bee. They have big compound eyes, quite a considerable huge pair of wings. And they just look like a bumblebee only without any stripes at all as well as more hairy and just a little larger than a typical everyday bee. Their looks had made them look scary among a lot of people all over the world.
The carpenter bees have earned their title of carpenter since they build most of their nests using things that a carpenter would use like bamboo, dead wood, or even something as strong as timber. Since they look scary to the untrained eye, most avoid them or panic upon the sight of them. They always ask one another, do carpenter bees sting? And then run around when it comes near them. Well, all that was for nothing and would just make such people look silly as they panic.
Like most of the other unique species of bees, such carpenter bees are basically known for being solitary though there are several exceptions and there are several that tend to be gregarious that will join with other groups. Now, only the female carpenter bees have stings and male carpenter bees do not. And just because they are female this doesn’t mean they don’t sting at all. Do carpenter bees sting even if the only ones with stings are females? The answer to this question is yes. Of course, every other bee does sting, it’s a habit.
But always keep in mind that bees just like to be left alone and not disturbed. Indeed the answer to “do carpenter bees sting?” is indeed yes the females can, the males cannot. But always remember, they won’t disturb you if you won’t disturb them.
Carpenter bees and nature
Bees are an integral part of Mother Nature’s great circle of life, without them, those beautiful views of prairies and fields dotted with flowers of every color and shade would not be possible. But as the man moved into modern homes and lived within the territories of these complex animals, these bees, particularly the carpenter bees also changed their nesting behaviors to adapt to and take advantage of the unique opportunity that the situation presents. This is where the problems with how carpenter bees damage wooden parts of homes came to be.
This species of bees earned their name because of their unique nesting habits, they choose to build their homes in trunks and branches of different trees, making a labyrinth of burrows within the wood in order to create a safe haven where they can hide and lay their eggs.
Carpenter bee damage
This is the reason why some carpenter bees damage houses when they choose to build a nest among the wooden beams of a human dwelling instead of a tree’s trunk or branch. You can only imagine how the wooden supports of homes can be severely weakened by these bees’ nesting habits, the beam may look solid and normal on the outside, but you will be surprised as to how fast these carpenter bees can create a network of tunnels inside the wood. The once solid and compact state of wooden beams can turn into weak and hollow support within a short period of time; this can result in the beams collapsing under the weight that they were supposed to carry.
Although carpenter bees damage wooden parts of houses, they are not as aggressive as the dreaded killer bees, these carpenter bees will not sting you unless you purposely and carelessly handle them and even then, only the female carpenter bees can hurt you because male carpenter bees do not have any stingers. It is also a good thing that these bees do not live in colonies; the thought of having a swarm of these bees making their burrows in your home can be the stuff of nightmares for most homeowners.
A number of things can be done to prevent carpenter bees damage in your homes, these range from thick protective paints to plastic or steel sidings over the wood to discourage any bee from burrowing into in, these products are available in most home finishing outlets, you just have to choose the one most applicable to your home.
Here are some tips on how to get rid of carpenter bees.
1. Use pesticides to eliminate these bees. There are effective powders used to get rid of carpenter bees such as Bendiocarb, Carbaryl dust, and even boric acid. It is important to read the instructions and warnings for the product for safety measures. Spray it to areas where these bees are boring on trees or unpainted wood. Look for it in the fence, sidings, overhangs, and even decks.
2. If the wood where carpenter bees are boring is severely damaged, spray the area more often at about two weeks intervals for effective results.
3. Use an aerosol carburetor cleaner to kill bees inside the tunnels. This has a tube that extends into the hole but is very careful when using this and read the instruction manual thoroughly. Protect the face and wear protection for the eyes.
4. Using steel wool, stuff the hole with it Steel is hard so bees cannot dig through it. Soon after, they will leave the area to look for another nest.
5. Make sure to paint all wooden areas to avoid carpenter bees they avoid wood that is difficult to bore in.
6. When you see holes where they can lay eggs and make a home, fill the area with heavy and sturdy material.
7. Carpenter bees don’t like it if the environment is noisy.
8. If you have a good budget, hiring an exterminator will be a good idea since they deal with these problems and they can get rid of the bees thoroughly.
