Spring is in the air! So are the carpenter bees boring holes in your home's fascia boards and siding. Great, right? (Totally not great). Let's take a look at the carpenter bee up close and personal before we talk about carpenter bee extermination, shall we?
What Are Carpenter Bees?
Carpenter bees, not unlike termites, bore into the wood that makes up your home's structure. Unlike termites, however, they don't eat the wood. Instead, they nest there, using wood bits to create partitions between the cells of their nests and leaving tell-tale wood shavings behind on the ground below. If you start to see what appears to be sawdust on the ground outside your home, look up. There's a stellar chance you have a carpenter bee infestation.While carpenter bee tunnels are shallow and structural damage to your property is usually minor, the cosmetic damage can be vast, and curb appeal is definitely important.
Identifying Carpenter Bees
Even though carpenter bees look very similar to bumblebees, they are actually very different. Bumblebees are a very friendly species of bee that play a vital role in pollination. While carpenter bees also play a large role in pollination, they can also cause some structural damage. That damage is one of the first ways to identify carpenter bees - their nests. They nest in holes they bore in wood, possibly your fascia boards or siding. Another key difference in carpenter bees and bumblebees lies with their abdominal section. The abdomen of a bumblebee is furry and has yellow and black stripes. Carpenter bees have a black dot on the back rather than stripes.
How to Identify a Carpenter Bee Nest
The entrance to their nests are marked by perfectly circular holes measuring approximately half an inch in diameter. Inside you'll find, in most cases, solitary bees who prefer to live alone but near one another. Occasionally, mothers and daughters nest together, dividing labor among themselves for optimal survival. One guards the nest from other bees while the others forage for pollen and nectar to feed their hive.
Are They Harmful?
They aren't really that aggressive at all. Male carpenter bees do not have stingers and while female carpenter bees do, it takes a lot to make them angry enough to sting, like catching them in your hand. If you see carpenter bees around, you won't really have to worry about them stinging you. Those flowers you planted this spring rely on carpenter bees for pollination, so these insects do serve a purpose in the plant and animal kingdoms beyond just buzzing about and tricking us into thinking they're bumblebees.
While doing your seasonal home improvements, you'll probably want to look into carpenter bee extermination in Atlanta to make sure you get rid of these pesky pests once and for all. Carpenter bee season runs from March to September - so give the team at Breda Pest Management a call to discuss your carpenter bee extermination needs.
