Insect identification help please
Helski
Posts: 13
We noticed lots of little holes along the edge of one of our flower beds next to paving. Lots of little holes between paving slabs too. The holes are perfectly round and a bit smaller than if you poked a hole with a pencil.
We thought it might be ants or wasps so were very cautious when lifting part of the patio to investigate. However there was no apparent network of tunnels or a nest beneath the soil.
We noticed lots of little wasp like insects were flying around very low to the soil near where the holes were. Perhaps 1-2 per hole. They didn't try and sting us and were much smaller than a wasp. They were wasp like but when one stayed still long enough the yellow seemed to be more on their back legs than their body and they had wider upper back legs like bees that have the pollen collecting hairs.
We wondered if they were some sort of hover fly but they didn't dart around in the same way as the ones we usually see.
They don't seem aggressive so we aren't worried about them and noticed then reburrowing where we'd dug. We turned the area where we lifted the patio into a new rose bed so they've done us a favour really.
Any help to satisfy our curiosity would be gratefully received.
Thank you
Posts
any pictures ?
One of the mining bees?
http://www.gardensafari.net/english/mining_bees.htm
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Hi Helski,
You would know if they were honey bees as there would be a lot more of them .... also they would not be creating a hive in that sort of situation.
Could it be these?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mason_bee
or these?
http://www.royensoc.co.uk/insect_info/what/solitary_bees.htm
Bee
A single bee creates just one twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in her lifetime
Sound like mining bees if the holes are in the ground - usually where the soil is somewhat dry/sandy. Nice to have in the garden & good pollinators. Mason bees would be holes in walls with crumbling mortar.
Definitely mining bees, probably Andrena denticulata.:
http://www.gardensafari.net/english/mining_bees.htm
Thank you Bob. It is nice to know who we're sharing our garden with
It is indeed Helski.