“Boring bees” is a common nickname for carpenter bees, which drill neat round holes in wood. Despite the damage, they do not eat wood. Adult carpenter bees feed on nectar and pollen from flowers. The wood is only for building nest tunnels where the females lay eggs.
What Carpenter Bees Actually Eat
- Nectar: adults drink flower nectar for energy.
- Pollen: females collect it and mix it with nectar into a “bee bread” ball for each egg.
- Larvae: the grubs in the tunnel eat that stored pollen and nectar ball.
Some carpenter bees “rob” nectar. Instead of entering a flower, they cut a small hole in the base of the petals to reach the nectar. This does not pollinate the flower, though they also visit flowers the usual way and help pollinate many plants.
Why They Bore Into Wood
Females chew a round entrance hole about half an inch wide, then turn and tunnel along the grain. They build a row of cells inside, each stocked with a pollen ball and an egg. The yellow-brown sawdust under the hole is waste from drilling, not food. They prefer bare, unpainted softwoods like cedar, pine, redwood and cypress.
How to Tell Them Apart from Bumblebees
Carpenter bees look like bumblebees, but the top of their abdomen is shiny and mostly hairless, while a bumblebee’s is fuzzy. Males, which cannot sting, often hover near the nest and look intimidating.
Protecting Wood Without Harming the Bees
Carpenter bees are valuable pollinators, so many people choose to live with a few. If the damage is a problem:
- Paint or stain bare wood. Finished wood is much less attractive.
- Use hardwoods or pressure-treated lumber for new structures.
- Fill unused holes with wood putty in the fall or after the bees leave.
- Offer a block of untreated softwood away from the house as a decoy nest.
If you need pest control, ask a licensed professional and avoid spraying flowers where bees feed.
How to Help Them
Plant flowers that bloom from spring to fall, and avoid pesticides on blooming plants. A shallow dish of water with stones is also helpful.
Bottom Line
Boring bees eat nectar and pollen, not wood. Protect your wood with paint and enjoy the pollination. To learn about other bees, see what solitary bees eat, what leafcutter bees eat and what blue banded bees eat.
