Two years ago I had bumble bees next in a low hanging bird house. It was AMAZING to watch them go in and out and have flight lessons for the young bumblebees. The young bees would come out of the house, and practice their wings. If they sat too long, the older bumblebees would push them off. They would fly around the house a couple go times and then go back in. I hung the same house in the same spot las year, but they did not return. I am going to make a couple of these for my yard and give item a try. Thank you for sharing.
Pre drill and countersink your screw holes. The drywall screws will rust and will often snap off when attempting to remove after being outdoors. Use a forstner bit clamped to a sacrificial backing board to drill your openings without blowout.
Great video. The orange-rumped bumblebees treated themselves to our bird feeder last year and loved that location. This year they have moved to the back of the property and we now have baby birds in the birdhouse.
In my yard (SW Washington state), bumble bees have nested in the following places: 1) in the dashboard of a mostly buried abandoned car (long story); 2) under a thick piece of plywood which had been laying on the ground for a few years; 3) under cardboard sheet mulch (with no mulch on that part); 4) under a bale of hay which is protected from the rain; 4) under a flat rock which had been excavated by a mole(?). The species were Bombus melanopygus and Bombus vosnesenskii.
Hello! It's May 8, 2020 and I have found some (maybe) Bombus huntii (based on your picture - I can't clearly identify) nesting in an old birdhouse hanging about 3-1/2 to 4 feet from the ground on a wood fence. I am in Eugene Oregon. I am ecstatic to see them! The birdhouse was never used by birds but it has been used by paper wasps over the years. I didn't look closely the past couple weeks at the bees coming and going because I thought they were just wasps -- but they are these glorious bumbles!! The bumblebees here where I live are just gone over the past several years...I only see one on rare occasions-never bunches like I used to see. Same for the honeybees. Heartbreaking. Hope you see this post!
Thank you. I will do one early in the morning. One bumblebee is looking for nesting place for days. I made house for her but couldn’t think of putting cotton nesting material in it. I put some hays and she didn’t like it. I hope I am not too late.
I have seen bumblebees visiting the flowers in my yard. I don't know where they are nesting, but I like the idea of having a nesting box for them as well as for the mason and leaf cutter bees.
Hi, I found your video and it’s very interesting the comment you made about the studies and the mice. I live in El Salvador. I have a huge passion fruit I planted. I read a study made in Argentina about how bumblebees are the best pollinators for this plant due to its size. They walk around the flower and pollen gets on their back and easily taken to other flowers. After I read that I started to look for bumblebees in my garden. I don’t know their scientific names. But, there are some big black one that get to my passion flowers and there are some other ones a bit smaller with yellow marks that come to my dogs poop. In the morning when I’m collecting their poop to be trashed, I notice most of the time this bumblebee on them. And if I pick the poop, the poor little guy would be flying everywhere looking for it. So, I did some search and read that they use the poop, take them to their colonies and that way avoid other predators from getting in their nests. So, I wonder if the mice poop had something to do on those bumblebees that used boxes that had mice before? Just wondering and sharing my experience!
Bumblebees are our only native bees in North America. They also pollinate 200x more plants than do honeybees bee per bee. So it’s important to maintain habitat and give them the best chance possible for survival. Thanks for the video!
Thanks for the comment, one small correction, there are about 50 species of bumble bee in North America, and yes they are native, but there are nearly 4000 native bee species here, bumble bees are just a small part of the diverse native bee community.
In the case of my garden, I had placed the bumblebees' nest "drowned" in the bush made up of a lavender plant. Inside the nest I had placed raw sheep's wool. Unfortunately, employment did not occur within 2 years. I live near a small watercourse whose banks are covered with vegetation mixed with medium-sized stones dedicated to the consolidation of the bank, I had noticed that the bumblebee queens, at the beginning of the season, flew close to the banks in search of a potentially interesting tunnel. I will try the version you suggested leaning against a tree.
I live in Christchurch, New Zealand. I live in a shack that used to be a small mobile theatre stage. There's been bumblebees in my back wall, but unfortunately the structure also attracts mice, who eat the bumblebees. A house like the one you've shown here may really help this dilemma.
thanks. I just know that bumble bees/carpenter/mason bees smell my cedar fence planks and are making their holes in these planks that are only 1/2" thick...Interestingly enough, they only choose the boards that have the 4x4 post in front or where the corners of the fence join. The inside of my fence faces North, so they are boring from the shaded side...
I don't think bumble bees make holes in wood. I've been watching videos on mason bees (and a little on leaf cutter bees), and neither type make holes, they just use holes that they find & build the nest out of clay mud (mason bees), & either leaves or flower petals (leaf cutter bees). Carpenter bees do chew holes in wood, and I think I read that some wasps do as well.
Just discovered a bumble bee nest in the ground, in my yard, it's early summer here in New England, June, 10th, guess they already have a home so laying a box near them would be a waste of time?
I watched the beginning of your video, and I'm having a hard time understanding when to put my house out. Do I put it out in the early fall or late winter, so the new queens have a place to stay?
The queens won’t occupy them until spring when they are establishing a nest For the winter, they generally find a sheltered area to overwinter like in some wood piles or leaf litter, or something like that
Thank you for responding. I have been watching videos on these houses - you are the only one who has a entry like that. I did purchase a mason bee Hotel And the instructions were to hang at about 4 feet off the ground and with a southern exposure. I am very curious if you have any updates as to your bumblebees moving in? I think several people in this community would enjoy an update
I have just found a bubble bee 🐝 nest in an old mouse 🐁 nest. Do you think it would be safe to move the nest into a box or just make some houses and hope they choose to move in the future
Hi I’m in Liverpool Uk 🇬🇧 and i have lived in my home from since 2014. The bees have lived here longer than me! For about 4 years they lived in a air vent in my back yard but relocated to the front of my house there after and have stayed there since! I love them living in my walls! The problem is on the front of my house it gets very windy and this year I’ve had to rescue a fair few that have just gotten too exhausted to fly up to the hole is there anything I could do to help my colony?
We had to spray our house and we had bumblebee nests somewhere in our roof and athey are so cute and fluffy. I’m hoping to make this and attract the queen or would we be dead :(
I’m hoping to do the same. I saw something with honey bees of a scent you can make to mimic the scent bees use to mark good nest locations. I’m not sure if this works with bumble bees but assume it would.
I have not had success getting bumble bees to nest in mine. There shouldn’t be much for the ants in the nests so I assume they will loose interest. If the ants are keeping the bumble bees from nesting you may need to relocate the box .
I saw this lady signal bees home using pictures on the box Another lady rescued a bee and it follows her around the house and they hang out Is it possible for people to talk to the bees. Beyond just perfume signals?
Two years ago I had bumble bees next in a low hanging bird house. It was AMAZING to watch them go in and out and have flight lessons for the young bumblebees. The young bees would come out of the house, and practice their wings. If they sat too long, the older bumblebees would push them off. They would fly around the house a couple go times and then go back in. I hung the same house in the same spot las year, but they did not return. I am going to make a couple of these for my yard and give item a try. Thank you for sharing.
I’m going to build one or two my self. I’m in New Zealand so it sounds like a great way to save the bb population.
Pre drill and countersink your screw holes. The drywall screws will rust and will often snap off when attempting to remove after being outdoors. Use a forstner bit clamped to a sacrificial backing board to drill your openings without blowout.
Great video. The orange-rumped bumblebees treated themselves to our bird feeder last year and loved that location. This year they have moved to the back of the property and we now have baby birds in the birdhouse.
Thank you for interesting video. Best wishes and great respect to the entomologists and devoted beekeepers and bumble-bee keepers!
In my yard (SW Washington state), bumble bees have nested in the following places: 1) in the dashboard of a mostly buried abandoned car (long story); 2) under a thick piece of plywood which had been laying on the ground for a few years; 3) under cardboard sheet mulch (with no mulch on that part); 4) under a bale of hay which is protected from the rain; 4) under a flat rock which had been excavated by a mole(?). The species were Bombus melanopygus and Bombus vosnesenskii.
Hello! It's May 8, 2020 and I have found some (maybe) Bombus huntii (based on your picture - I can't clearly identify) nesting in an old birdhouse hanging about 3-1/2 to 4 feet from the ground on a wood fence. I am in Eugene Oregon. I am ecstatic to see them! The birdhouse was never used by birds but it has been used by paper wasps over the years. I didn't look closely the past couple weeks at the bees coming and going because I thought they were just wasps -- but they are these glorious bumbles!! The bumblebees here where I live are just gone over the past several years...I only see one on rare occasions-never bunches like I used to see. Same for the honeybees. Heartbreaking. Hope you see this post!
Lucky! I have yet to have anything nesting in my boxes.
Thank you. I will do one early in the morning. One bumblebee is looking for nesting place for days. I made house for her but couldn’t think of putting cotton nesting material in it. I put some hays and she didn’t like it. I hope I am not too late.
I have 2 bumble bee nests in my backyard. Just built 2 boxes and moved the nests into them.
You just explain everything so well
I have seen bumblebees visiting the flowers in my yard. I don't know where they are nesting, but I like the idea of having a nesting box for them as well as for the mason and leaf cutter bees.
Recommendation... Drill pilot holes for the screws. It will keep the wood from splitting.
Hi, I found your video and it’s very interesting the comment you made about the studies and the mice. I live in El Salvador. I have a huge passion fruit I planted. I read a study made in Argentina about how bumblebees are the best pollinators for this plant due to its size. They walk around the flower and pollen gets on their back and easily taken to other flowers. After I read that I started to look for bumblebees in my garden. I don’t know their scientific names. But, there are some big black one that get to my passion flowers and there are some other ones a bit smaller with yellow marks that come to my dogs poop. In the morning when I’m collecting their poop to be trashed, I notice most of the time this bumblebee on them. And if I pick the poop, the poor little guy would be flying everywhere looking for it. So, I did some search and read that they use the poop, take them to their colonies and that way avoid other predators from getting in their nests. So, I wonder if the mice poop had something to do on those bumblebees that used boxes that had mice before? Just wondering and sharing my experience!
Interesting,
the big black ones are Carpenter Bees, they are solitary and nest in wood.
Very well done! I am going to try making a couple of these. Thanks very much for putting this together!!
Bumblebees are our only native bees in North America. They also pollinate 200x more plants than do honeybees bee per bee. So it’s important to maintain habitat and give them the best chance possible for survival. Thanks for the video!
Thanks for the comment, one small correction, there are about 50 species of bumble bee in North America, and yes they are native, but there are nearly 4000 native bee species here, bumble bees are just a small part of the diverse native bee community.
In the case of my garden, I had placed the bumblebees' nest "drowned" in the bush made up of a lavender plant. Inside the nest I had placed raw sheep's wool.
Unfortunately, employment did not occur within 2 years. I live near a small watercourse whose banks are covered with vegetation mixed with medium-sized stones dedicated to the consolidation of the bank,
I had noticed that the bumblebee queens, at the beginning of the season, flew close to the banks in search of a potentially interesting tunnel.
I will try the version you suggested leaning against a tree.
I like bees. So chill just doing there thing. When they are pollinating you can pet them they don't care xD
Very informative gonna try this with my kids!
I live in Christchurch, New Zealand. I live in a shack that used to be a small mobile theatre stage. There's been bumblebees in my back wall, but unfortunately the structure also attracts mice, who eat the bumblebees.
A house like the one you've shown here may really help this dilemma.
Any new updates on if they worked? And what keeps wasps from using them? I don’t mind wasps, just wondering if they’ll be attracted or not.
thanks. I just know that bumble bees/carpenter/mason bees smell my cedar fence planks and are making their holes in these planks that are only 1/2" thick...Interestingly enough, they only choose the boards that have the 4x4 post in front or where the corners of the fence join. The inside of my fence faces North, so they are boring from the shaded side...
I don't think bumble bees make holes in wood. I've been watching videos on mason bees (and a little on leaf cutter bees), and neither type make holes, they just use holes that they find & build the nest out of clay mud (mason bees), & either leaves or flower petals (leaf cutter bees).
Carpenter bees do chew holes in wood, and I think I read that some wasps do as well.
Sweet bumble bees
Good job.👍
Thanks 👍
Just discovered a bumble bee nest in the ground, in my yard, it's early summer here in New England, June, 10th, guess they already have a home so laying a box near them would be a waste of time?
Thank you! 🙏🏻
I watched the beginning of your video, and I'm having a hard time understanding when to put my house out. Do I put it out in the early fall or late winter, so the new queens have a place to stay?
The queens won’t occupy them until spring when they are establishing a nest
For the winter, they generally find a sheltered area to overwinter like in some wood piles or leaf litter, or something like that
This was very useful. Thank you. Does it matter which direction the house entrance is acclimated?
I am not aware of any studies looking at orientation of the entrance. Many native bees like southeast facing nests but it might not matter too much.
Thank you for responding. I have been watching videos on these houses - you are the only one who has a entry like that. I did purchase a mason bee Hotel And the instructions were to hang at about 4 feet off the ground and with a southern exposure. I am very curious if you have any updates as to your bumblebees moving in? I think several people in this community would enjoy an update
have you consider using 1 gallon water jugs?
I have just found a bubble bee 🐝 nest in an old mouse 🐁 nest. Do you think it would be safe to move the nest into a box or just make some houses and hope they choose to move in the future
Also
They are tuned by the whether. Can you artificially extend hibernation of a queen bee until needed?
Any ideas on promoting Bombus sonorus? Are they attracted to the same nest types?
as far as I know they, like most bumble bees, nest underground in abandoned rodent burrows so they theoretically would use these nest boxes
I keep hearing about keeping ants out by using vent hole coverings. What about the entrance hole? Won't ants just go in through that?
Hi I’m in Liverpool Uk 🇬🇧 and i have lived in my home from since 2014. The bees have lived here longer than me! For about 4 years they lived in a air vent in my back yard but relocated to the front of my house there after and have stayed there since! I love them living in my walls! The problem is on the front of my house it gets very windy and this year I’ve had to rescue a fair few that have just gotten too exhausted to fly up to the hole is there anything I could do to help my colony?
How much bleeding goes in the bee box
Cedar -- oil is known to repel insects. Seems that pine or hardwood is a better choice?? I am going to use some Pine for my houses this year.
...my fence would disagree with this statement. I have at least 12 holes in various planks. all holes are on the North side away from the sun
I think cedar is supposed to repel moths, but not other insects.
Cedar will stand up to rot a lot better and will repel fungus.
Commenting for algorithm.
We had to spray our house and we had bumblebee nests somewhere in our roof and athey are so cute and fluffy. I’m hoping to make this and attract the queen or would we be dead :(
I’m hoping to do the same. I saw something with honey bees of a scent you can make to mimic the scent bees use to mark good nest locations. I’m not sure if this works with bumble bees but assume it would.
How do you keep ants from going in the tube?
I have not had success getting bumble bees to nest in mine. There shouldn’t be much for the ants in the nests so I assume they will loose interest. If the ants are keeping the bumble bees from nesting you may need to relocate the box .
I think she ment, if what is the point of the screen on the vent holes for the ants, if they just can go in through the front hole if they want in.
Ants keep bee nests clean apparently, by eating all the mites and parasites within the nest. Thus keeping the bees healthy and clean.
I saw this lady signal bees home using pictures on the box
Another lady rescued a bee and it follows her around the house and they hang out
Is it possible for people to talk to the bees. Beyond just perfume signals?
wouldn't ants come in the front opening?
Followl up video!?🐝
I actually didn't get any nesting in my box last year, I am still hoping to have some success this year.
I would think if you put a captured bumble bee in the trap, the scent will attract bumble bees?
Do bumblebees reuse the houses or do they boxes need to bee destroyed?
It’s my understanding that they will reuse nests, but the occupation rate is so low I don’t have any real good data on this
I stacked 6 bales of straw and the next spring there was a nest at the bottom
👍❤🇬🇧
Or bird nest
Its a shame. The screws split the wood. I would have used stronger wood and nails rather than screws.