Bees

The three main types of bees are the bumblebee, the solitary or masonry bee, and the honey bee.

Bumblebees aren’t easily confused with other bees and are large, furry and round. Their nests can be found underground in abandoned burrows, bird boxes, compost bins or under decking. Solitary or masonry bees have a reddish-brown bottom and a black body. These small bees can be seen popping in and out of walls or very small holes in the ground, but they don’t cause any problems to the actual structure of buildings.

Honey bees are small and their colour varies from golden brown to almost black. Unlike bumblebees and solitary bees, honey bees swarm and can set up intimidating temporary camps in tree branches, fence posts and even cars. However in almost all of these cases the swarms take off after a day or two and set up a more permanent camp elsewhere.

Bees aren’t a protected species and can be treated, however their numbers are in decline. Most bees won’t sting unless they are in danger or provoked, and after the summer season is over they will go away and not return to the same nesting site the following year.

Masons Pest Control will only treat bees if they are a direct threat to public health, and in most cases we use a qualified beekeeper to move swarms safely away from the customer’s property.