Posts Tagged: carder bees

European Carder Bees Do Like Snapdragons!

What a show! Last weekend we spotted female European wool carder bees (so named because they collect or card plant hairs for their nests) buzzing in and out of our snapdragons. The bees, about the size of honey bees, are mostly black and yellow. The females range in body length from 11 to 13...

A male European wool carder bee patrolling snapdragons in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male European wool carder bee patrolling snapdragons in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The European wool carder bee is about the size of a honey bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The European wool carder bee is about the size of a honey bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Dorsal view of the European wool carder bee as it rests on a snapdragon. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Dorsal view of the European wool carder bee as it rests on a snapdragon. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All that patrolling makes a fellow tired. A male European wool carder bee rests on a leaf. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All that patrolling makes a fellow tired. A male European wool carder bee rests on a leaf. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Bottoms up! A female wool carder bee foraging in a snapdragon. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Bottoms up! A female wool carder bee foraging in a snapdragon. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Not a Terrorist

Last summer we watched European wool carder bees (Anthidium manicatum) dart in and out of the catmint and salvia in our bee friendly garden. The males are very territorial, so they'd chase away honey bees, bumble bees, hover flies and other insects from THEIR flowers. Yes, they claimed them. Here...

Wool Carder Bees

WOOL CARDER BEE heads for salvia, occupied by another wool carder bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Sip of Nectar

WOOL CARDER BEE sips nectar from catmint. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Salvia

WOOL CARDER BEE nectaring salvia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Mating Pair

MATING PAIR of wool carder bees. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Chasing Carder Bees

When this insect flashes by you in your garden, at first glance you think: "Yellow jacket? Paper wasp? What's that?" Then it lands and you realize it's neither. It's a bee.The insects buzzing in our catmint last weekend were wool-carder bees, Anthidium manicatum (Linnaeus), as identified by several...

Female carder bees

CAUGHT IN FLIGHT, a female carder bee heads for saliva blossom--but it's occupied by another female carder bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Sipping Nectar

CARDER BEE sips nectar from a salvia blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Carding

THE CARDER BEE is so named because it gathers "down" or "fuzz" from leaves to build its nest. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Evidence

THE LEAF of a catmint (see upper right hand corner) shows evidence of carding. Carder bees remove the fuzz or down to build their nests. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Love on a Catmint

MATING--A male carder bee (top) finally catches up to a female. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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