How Long Do Carpenter Bees Live

Carpenter bees though they may be a nuisance are vital pollinators.

How long do carpenter bees live. The pollen that carpenter bees collect is used as food for their offspring while they are young. Once a carpenter bee finds a mate enough food and the perfect nesting area during the spring they will burrow into the wood to create a hole and nesting galleries for the female to lay eggs. As the cool weather approaches they winter in the nests they created in the wood.

The female carpenter bee the lead nest engineer is identifiable by her solid black head. Emptying a trap with live carpenter bees can be scary. These insects earn their name because they bore one-half inch wide holes that appear to be perfectly round on exterior wooden surfaces.

If the same tunnel is used by multiple carpenter bees over multiple years it can stretch up to 10 feet long severely weakening the wood. They spit it back out leaving a pile of wood dust below the entrance to the nest. Do They Make Honey.

When the carpenter bees first emerge in the spring they have about 2-3 weeks to find a mate. Female carpenter bees lay eggs in their nests during the warm months. Carpenter bees are very active from early spring through summer around houses and other wooden structures.

Carpenter bees will tunnel into the wood either on your house deck or outdoor furniture. Unlike honey bees or bumble bees carpenter bees are solitary creatures. On average about one year.

Place the bagged carpenter bee trap in your freezer for 24 hours. How Long Do Carpenter Bees Live. How long do carpenter bees live.