CHAPTER VI 



CARPENTER BEES 



Wise Insects that can Work in Wood, but Avoid Hard Labor When 



Circumstances Permit 



A large bee common to California, if not to 

 the Coast, called the Carpenter bee was fre- 

 quently seen about our garden at Diablo in 

 July and August. This insect might be taken 

 for a large bumble bee, for it has much the 

 same form and general appearance, though 

 in color it is wholly black without the yellow 

 markings that distinguish the various species 

 of the bumble bee. This statement, however, 

 should be qualified, for while the female Car- 

 penters are all black, the males of at least 

 one species are wholly yellow in color and 

 there is a large species found on the Atlantic 

 side of the continent that is marked with a 

 yellow thorax. 



These large bees were given the name of 

 Carpenter from the fact they bore holes in 

 dead wood of various kinds in which to nest. 



At Palm Springs, in the desert section of 

 the southern part of California, the largest 

 known species of Carpenter bee, or member 

 of the Xylocopa family, is quite common; 

 holes in logs, fence posts and other dead 

 wood, into which a person could insert a 

 finger, made by these bees are frequently 

 seen. While there is little or no trouble in 

 finding a black female, it is not so easy a 

 matter to find, or see, one of the big yellow 

 males. They are not only swift in flight but 

 shy, consequently they are not easily cap- 

 tured. These southern bees are about an inch 

 in length with a wing spread of nearly two 

 inches. The holes they make for their nests 

 are sometimes as much as a foot deep and 

 are always made in dry wood; never in green 

 or wet wood. In the farther part they make 

 lateral cells for the accommodation of their 

 young. 



There is a very small member of the Car- 

 penter genus which is only about a quarter of 

 an inch in length. This dainty little bee is 

 known as Ceratina dupja and is of a metallic 

 blue color. It makes borings into pithy twigs 

 for the nests, removing the pith and making 

 a series of cells one on top of the other. Into 

 each cell an egg is laid on a supply of pollen 

 for the larva when hatched. Observers of 

 the work of this little insect say it is one of 

 the very few insects that seems to have any 

 interest in the maturing of its young. The 

 mother remains with the nest until the brood 

 reaches maturity, when she "leads forth her 

 full-fledged family in a flight into the 

 sunshine." 



The large Carpenter bees that visited our 

 parden at Diablo were a trifle smaller than 

 the big fellows of the southern part of the 



state. The only specimens of the species that 

 I saw about Diablo during the summer were 

 those that came to the Salvia blossoms. At 

 almost any time of the day between the hours 

 of 10 a. m. and 3 p. m. from one to five of 

 these bees could be seen working around the 

 base of the flowers of the Salvia plants. They 

 visited no other flowers in the garden, though 

 there were many other kinds which were at- 

 tractions for numerous other species of bees 

 and members of the wasp family. 



The operations of the Carpenter bees at the 

 base of the flowers and on the outside part 

 attracted my attention, and I found upon in- 

 vestigation that they were making holes 

 through that part of the flower in order to 

 insert their tongue-like process and reach the 

 nectar of the blossom. The long, narrow 

 flower would not admit of the entrance of the 

 bulky form of the bees so they could obtain 

 the honey in the usual way from the inside; 

 but the Carpenters were not to be denied the 

 sweets of the Salvia. With the sharp tools 

 used in boring holes in wood it was a simple 

 matter to perforate the soft petal substance 

 of the flower. The question arises, was the 

 change of method of securing the nectar in 

 the flowers instinctive or the manifestation of 

 reasoning power? Of course, no one knows. 

 We can only apply our own reasoning power 

 to the facts and draw conclusions. Those who 

 can not concede any degree of mind action 

 to the lower forms of life will insist that in- 

 stinct alone supplied the impulse underlying 

 the action, while others who think nature gives 

 brain tissues to all forms of life for a like 

 purpose will conclude that it is more logical 

 to accept a seeming rational act as the result 

 of something akin to what we call mental 

 operation in humans. 



Perhaps in the distant future when the 

 mind of man becomes more potent and is able 

 to delve deeper into the mysteries of nature, 

 with a greater knowledge and understanding 

 of the cells, tissue and organs of all forms of 

 life, the mooted question will be given a solu- 

 tion acceptable to all students of nature. 



On the occasion of a visit to Deerwood, a 

 country retreat of ours in Mendocino 

 county, I found the same species of Carpenter 

 bee as that last mentioned numerously repre- 

 sented about the grounds of a summer home 

 there. While observing their operations I 

 noticed that all the holes made by the bees 

 were uniformly in the softest wood to be found 

 about the place, and their work showed that 

 they were not only able to pick out the soft 



