Masonry Bee box

Some species of bee are solitary. They do not live in large colonies and create large amounts of honey or large numbers of offspring.

These solitary bees have very different habits. However they need as much support as the commercial bees that we know produce honey.

We have a special nesting box for some of these bees hanging on the wall in the garden.

It has narrow plastic tubes inside. They are Perspex and see-through.

Now here’s the clever part.

First the bee investigates the whole tube. Then she decides to back into it with her abdomen first. This allows her to lay one egg, leave a little gap that she fills up with ventilation then another egg laying in a line; Filling up the tube.

This nest box allows you to inspect and see into the tubes. We’re not quite clear what has happened. But there does appear to have been some activity to fill up the tubes.

It may be impossible to know which insects have done this. Until of course they leave the box.we may never know. But like an insect hotel at least something has found this box useful.

If you are interested in supporting bees but you don’t have the skills or the space or the time to run a beehive this might be an option for you to support and help to look after them too.