Mason bees are a little smaller than a honeybee and blue-black in color, they actually look like a extremely well fed fly. They are very effective pollinators. Solitary bees, the females are the only ones with the ability to sting, with extreme prejudice. In the wild, they lay their eggs in small cavities but are very happy to lay their eggs in man made wooden blocks with holes drilled or cardboard tubes and paper straws- because they don’t mine their own nesting cavities. Female Mason bees forage for pollen and nectar and pack this food into the far end of their nesting cavity. Then she lays an egg and seals up the cell. This process continues until the bee has filled the entire chamber with a series of pollen/nectar/egg cells – usually for 4-6 weeks. Larvae hatch in a couple days, eat the food and spin a cocoon and pupate. By fall, the insects look like an adult bee, but they remain inside their cocoons throughout the winter.
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