Are Carpenter Bees A Problem?

Bees are absolutely essential to the health and vitality of our planet. Essential pollinators, bees help to transform the agricultural landscape that we know and understand. With more than 1,300 known species of bees found within Arizona, it helps to know a little more about the most common pests of the bunch.

Today, we are going to take a closer look at one of the lesser understood pest problems for residents throughout Arizona: carpenter bees.

What Are Carpenter Bees?

Carpenter bees are unique creatures in that they build their nests inside of wood. This traditionally isn’t a problem, as there are many wooden spaces in their natural habitat for carpenter bees to lay claim to. Carpenter bees are often confused with the far more common bumblebee thanks to their oval bodies with yellow and black markings. The key differentiator visually between carpenter bees and bumblebees has to do with their abdomen: carpenter bees have smooth bellies rather than hairy ones.

The carpenter bee is also a solitary creature, especially when compared to honey bees and bumblebees and their larger hives. Carpenter bees often live on their own and can be identified by the smooth and round holes they leave behind, typically bored into wood. These holes are where male carpenter bees host their nests and where females lay their larvae.

How Dangerous Are Carpenter Bees?

While carpenter bees can surely leave a trail of destruction in their wake, they aren’t very harmful directly to humans. Carpenter bees of the male variety aren’t even capable of stinging. While female carpenter bees can sting you, they only do so if they feel provoked – and even then, only rarely.

Even though we understand carpenter bees to not be dangerous, that doesn’t mean they can’t create harm while causing chaos in your daily life. If you have a home in Arizona and want to keep it free from potential issues, you might want to keep on reading!

How to Prevent Carpenter Bees.

Preventing a carpenter bee infestation is the best way to deal with any potential fallout from their presence. There are a few things that homeowners in Arizona can undertake immediately to help protect their property.

Identifying signs of a carpenter bee infestation is the first step toward getting the problem under control. Before picking up the phone to call on the team at Buzz Tech AZ Professional Bee Removal, consider enacting a few of the following tips and tricks.

1. Paint and Stain all wooden structures on and around your property. The right stain can help prevent damage from carpenter bees.
2. Address your foundation by filling in potential cracks or leaks with caulk. Seal other holes in your home’s exterior including your vents, pipes, and utility lines. Any entrance to your home is a path toward an infestation.
3. Replace ripped screens on your doors and ensure that all openings at the top and bottom are sealed. Address weather-stripping or install weather-stripping elements yourself.

Common Signs of Carpenter Bees

While we’ve outlined that carpenter bees are largely harmless from a physical perspective, most homeowners throughout Arizona still won’t want these insects on their property. Carpenter bees are considered one of the primary wood-damaging insects in the United States, due in large part to the prevalence of their population.

While carpenter bees are often found in old, soft trees, they can also present symptoms of an infestation through other signs.

• Visually See Bees – The easiest way to identify a carpenter bee infestation on your property in Arizona is by visually seeing them. A carpenter bee problem is notable because you will see them buzzing around your home, especially if they’ve nested within your walls. Bumblebees will largely avoid your roof and property line, while carpenter bees will be very interested in any local overhangs or wooden structures.
• Audibly Hear Them – The second easiest way to identify carpenter bees on your property is by hearing them. The sound of carpenter bees chewing through wood is particularly notable and potentially even scary if you don’t know what you are hearing.
• Holes In Wood – The most telling visual sign of an infestation, absent from seeing the bee itself, is the unique prevalence of bored holes in wooden structures. Carpenter bees leave behind nearly perfectly circular holes, typically in straight lines, from beneath wooden boards. Sometimes these bored holes may not appear circular, and this is due to the fact that carpenter bees can survive in the sun, thus allowing them to enter and exit your home.
• Physical Stress / Something Breaks – The slow erosion caused by carpenter bees eating wood can lead to physical consequences for your property. Carpenter bees can weaken stairs, break railings, and weaken balconies. For these reasons alone, it is important to catch a carpenter bee infestation as early as possible.

Buzz Tech Pest Control is proud to offer services to residents throughout Arizona. With service promised in under an hour, you are never far away from the help you need to deal with carpenter bees and other buzzing pests.