Odd and Ends

Some readers have wondered about the current status of my Mason Bees......they haven't been active for about a month now and the larvae are developing inside their cells. I bought an Observation House so that I could watch what happens.




I also had a few random shots left from my trip to Malheur NWR. Here are some of the lizards that we watched where there were no birds about.





And last, but not least, a few scenes from Burns. City girls giggle at places like this. We decided not to go in to see if they carried Premium Sunflower Chips.

Beez!!

Two weeks ago this was the state of the mason bees.....busy and filling up holes.


Then cold weather hit, they stopped being busy and egg-laying ceased. Finally yesterday and today brought warmer temps and the girls are back to business. Look how much they got done in those two days!




Here's one putting the finishing touches on her plug of mud sealing up the nest chamber. She'll start on a new one tomorrow and I might have to buy another bee nest.......

Mason Bee Update

Many of you commented on the photos and video I recently posted of my Mason Bee colony. You might be wishing for an update, but unfortunately the weather turned very cold and the bees have not been active at all since my last post about them. I hope they survive this blast....if they cannot forage, they will die.
If I shine a light into the nest block I can see bee rumps shining back at me. I don't know what their condition is and I can only hope that once the temps rise they will be back out in force. In their absence, several trees have come into bloom so they should have ample food once they get flying again.

Filling up the nest blocks

Look how far the girls have gotten!! Only yesterday they were buzzing about excitedly and now three holes are filled! This means that in each 6 inch deep hole she's laid up to 6 eggs, each on a pile of nectar and pollen, and separated from each other by a mud wall. She then seals the entrance with more mud and begins on another nest hole. If they keep this rate up I'll have to get another nest block!

Look at that wet mud!

This is my old, but clean, wooden nest block. Since I set it on the patio table and hadn't decided what to do with it the bees have taken it over. Guess I'll be leaving it there......

She's carrying mud!

Backyard Birds and Bees

Just when the weather got bee-yoo-tee-full I got sick. The yard cries for my attention but I am so sapped that I cannot attempt any labor......OK, so I did do a quick mow and dug up some infernal blackberry vines that threaten to take hold.....but that did me in for the day. So I sat down and continued to nurse myself back to health with cup of tea after Airborne after glass of OJ after cup of tea. I did have energy enough to push the button on my camera so here are some shots from the yard.

First, here's a video of the female Mason Bees getting all excited about their new, clean nest box.

And ONE and TWO and UP and DOWN and LOOK and EAT.......

Chickadee finally finds feeder full of sunflower

Flowering Currant

Female Mason Bee.....is that pollen on her hindquarters?

My favorite piece of yard art......an Anglerfish.

Want bees? Get Rosemary. I have two huge trailing bushes and one upright one. They bloom throughout the year and are very attractive to bees of all kinds.

Point Reyes Ceanothus about to pop into bloom.

Backyard Bees

My Mason Bees are busy! The past couple of days have been warm and sunny and a large number of bees have chewed their way out of their cocoons. The native Mason Bee is a solitary bee, not a hive dweller like the familiar honeybee. Last year, females laid eggs in the holes in this bee nest block, sealed the holes with mud and then died. They only live the one season but lay many eggs to ensure a population for the following year.

Crooked but sturdy.

The eggs hatch and feed on the pollen and nectar the female has left for them. They go through their various insect stages and finally become adult bees while still inside the nest block. They spin a sturdy cocoon around themselves by the fall and then go dormant for the winter.

It's at this time that you can open up your nest block, scrape out the cocoons and wash them off to rid them of parasitic mites which, over time, can decimate a colony. You can also remove any dead bees or cocoons parasitized by wasps. I cleaned my cocoons last winter and also cleaned out the nest chambers, which are full of mud and pollen and bee poop.

Dirty cocoons

Soaking cocoons

Sparkling clean cocoons!

I used half of an Altoids tin to store them in the top of the shelter and knew they would emerge from hibernation when they were good and ready (ie; when it's warm enough).

The shelter my nest block is in has interlocking beams on the roof and there's a space there just big enough for a bee. I came home Thursday night to find a bee butt in each hole.


Looking closer I saw one was facing out. Look at his cute face! It's a male because of the white on the face.



So why do I keep these bees? I never would have been interested in these bees if the store I work for hadn't started selling supplies to start your own colony. Non-native Honeybees are suffering hive collapse and native bees can always use a helping hand. Most folks want the bees for increasing fruit production on their trees but I just want to watch these gentle bees live their life in my small yard. The bonus is the crops of my apple tree and two blueberry bushes have definitely increased. The bees pollinate many plants but fruit trees are their favorites.

I mentioned their gentle nature.....the night I photographed the bee butts I kept hearing a soft buzzing and finally realized a little male bee was caught in my hair! Did he sting? Nope. I worked him out of my hair, he landed on my shirt for a minute then took off for a last minute flight before finding a spot to set his bee butt down for the night.

You, too, can host these bees in your country or urban yards. Every plant needs a pollinator!