Have you heard the phrase “Save the Bees?” When most people learn that bee populations are dwindling, they likely immediately think of the European honeybee (Apis mellifera), who live in hives of tens of thousands. While European honeybees are incredibly important pollinators for our agriculture, they are not the bees conservationists are most worried about; that concern goes to our native bees. Our native pollinators, of which there are thousands of species, are at constant risk from increased pesticide use and a lack of native plants. Native bees evolved with our native flora, and many are specialists who rely on specific species for survival. Some flowers can only be pollinated by a single type of bee as they’ve evolved structurally to do so.
Most native bees are solitary, meaning that they do not live in hives. Since they have no hive to protect, they do not swarm like the honeybee tends to, and rarely sting. In fact, many families of native bees do not even have stingers and have no interest in humans. This means we can safely put our bee housing in close view of the public. Native bees do not have hives to lay eggs in over the winter; instead, they usually burrow into the hollow stalks of native plants, plug the hole with wax, lay their eggs, and die. Come Spring, the larvae chew their way out of the wax, and begin the cycle anew. Our bee housing replicates those stalks, giving a place for this important cycle to renew itself. Come by on a warm spring day and see the young bees flying about.