Author Marc Newman ◦
I love this bee, it doesn’t mind me up close while she’s busy. Here she is finishing off her 7th apartment and still looks as fresh as a daisy. Interesting to contemplate how many Black Resin Bees we’ll have next season. If she lays say 5 eggs per apartment, you do the maths, attrition, as the dog would say, lots 🙂
I always thought they brought back resin in the tacky liquid form but here she is with a lump of crusty dried resin trying to fit it in the hole. I have seen her with a big lump that wouldn’t fit.
Yep, it fits. In it goes.
Waspy is working two holes to the right but is not happy with the bee. I missed an opportunity for a great photo when Blackie was flying in with a load and Waspy was standing up on her back legs, mandibles akimbo, trying to ward off the landing. As they say, might is right. Blackie just ignored her and got on with business.
The finished product at 205 (Level 2, 5th from left :-). She is just visible in 202 but this morning she was in 209. Waspy has a completed nest at 203 and is working on 207. Blackie seems to visit a number of different holes and I have seen her in Waspys one, presumably to see if there is any resin lying around not being used :-). Maybe there is a criminal element in the insect world.
Check out our Bees > Megachile > Megachile punctata.
Check out more blogs and contribution by Marc Newman.