Black(ish) Bees - Ask Extension
Some black bees have taken up living in a wooden bird house in the corner of my yard. They look a little like bumble bees but I don't see any yellow o...
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Black(ish) Bees #868615
Asked May 15, 2024, 6:13 PM EDT
Some black bees have taken up living in a wooden bird house in the corner of my yard. They look a little like bumble bees but I don't see any yellow on them - they are mostly black. I've only seen them flying in and out of the house so I haven't been able to look at one closely. I am just curious what type of bee they are, and if they have a "season" because I would like to clean out the bird house in the fall so that birds can use it next year.
Clackamas County Oregon
Expert Response
Hi Julie,
Thanks for looking out for our bees.
It's difficult to say with 100% certainty without a picture, but my bet is it is the black tailed bumble bee, Bombus melanopygus, which is one of our few bumble bee species that nests above ground. Also, from experience, I usually get a flood of questions about this bee specifically in bird houses at this time of the year.
The colony has likely been building for a few months. These are among our earliest nesting bumble bees, with queens establishing nests in February. The colonies are starting to become visibly large. They will naturally collapse in a few weeks, with the nests producing new queens that will disperse across the landscape preparing for next year. You should be good to clean the nest out by August. These are very common spring bumble bees, but a real delight to encounter all the same.
Best,
Andony
Thanks for looking out for our bees.
It's difficult to say with 100% certainty without a picture, but my bet is it is the black tailed bumble bee, Bombus melanopygus, which is one of our few bumble bee species that nests above ground. Also, from experience, I usually get a flood of questions about this bee specifically in bird houses at this time of the year.
The colony has likely been building for a few months. These are among our earliest nesting bumble bees, with queens establishing nests in February. The colonies are starting to become visibly large. They will naturally collapse in a few weeks, with the nests producing new queens that will disperse across the landscape preparing for next year. You should be good to clean the nest out by August. These are very common spring bumble bees, but a real delight to encounter all the same.
Best,
Andony
