These bees are large and often confused with bumble bees. Bumble bees are fuzzy with yellow and black coloration. Carpenter bees have a fuzzy head and thorax that are colored yellow and black. If you see a bee that looks like a bumblebee emerging from a hole in your porch, it’s a carpenter bee, not a bumblebee.

These bees are solitary and create their nest in wood.

They create the galleries by chewing through the wood with their mandibles. The carpenter bee will place “bee bread”, a mix of pollen and nectar, in the gallery and then lay an egg. Once the egg hatches, the larvae will feed on the bee bread.

Facts To Know:

Reproduction: Carpenter bees are not active year-round. Hibernating during the winter, the bees emerge from their nests in the spring.

Lifespan: On average the carpenter bee will live for about one year.

Hard To Kill: Although it is rare to be stung by one, their size is unnerving and people generally stay clear of them. Their nest is much more of a concern. These nests, if left untreated, will result in extensive structural damage and will result in costly repairs within a few years.