Orchard Bees
Mar. 19th, 2026 04:02 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bookscorpion posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
common_natureThis morning I went to check out the big insect hotel near the canal and I was just in time to catch a whole bunch of male European orchard bees who I am fairly sure had just hatched (the females will hatch a little later in the year).
How do I know they are males? The mustaches. Females have little horns.
You can see some of them still sitting in the holes and bamboo stalks they nest in
They are solitary bees but will happily be neighbours even when things get a little crowded. They're also incredibly efficient pollinators, much better than honey bees, and they pollinate a huge number of flower and tree species.
How do I know they are males? The mustaches. Females have little horns.
You can see some of them still sitting in the holes and bamboo stalks they nest in
They are solitary bees but will happily be neighbours even when things get a little crowded. They're also incredibly efficient pollinators, much better than honey bees, and they pollinate a huge number of flower and tree species.
