Bees in Maine are everywhere! They can be seen floating lazily through your garden, hopping from flower to flower. Maine bees are an important aspect of keeping plants alive and to help them thrive. That is one of the reasons bees are so important to the environment in Maine. And there are so many different types of bees in Maine, so let’s clarify which ones you want around your home.
Types of Bees in Maine
There are more than 270 species of bees in Maine. Of these species, the most commonly found ones are; Bumble, Cuckoo, Carpenter, and Honey Bees. Each of these species, also called families, differ in many ways of life. From the way they nest, to how they get food and survive, or their social behavior with one another.
Bumble Bees
Are larger bees that are about ½ to ¾ of an inch in length, they have lots of hair which makes them appear fuzzy, and they have yellow, black, white, orange, or red striped markings.
Cuckoo Bees
Are not like any normal bees that stay in colonies and care for their young. They don’t have very much hair, and with their hard exoskeletons and large mandibles, they loosely resemble wasps, which are not bees. They also don’t have pollen collecting structures, the hair on the bees leg that carries pollen when it forages. They range for ¼ to ½ of an inch in length.
The Carpenter Bee
Actually looks similar to the bumble bees where it has lots of hair and appears fuzzy. They are about ¼ to ½ an inch as well, but they have a yellow thorax and black abdomen. Meaning the section their wings are attached to is yellow and the bottom half of the body is black.
And last but not least…
Honey Bees
Honey Bees in Maine are very social insects that live in a hive, pollinate flowers and collect pollen. They are usually light brown with yellow stripes running horizontal on their abdomens. Their upper body, along with their legs and even their eyes, has lots of hair. They are about ½ inch long, and they have two antennae that can sense certain odors.
Bees in Maine
Bees in general like to be around low-lying plants where they can find food, and grow their home. They don’t particularly like forests, as they don’t provide as many food sources, being quite shaded. They prefer more desert-type places like prairies, which provide a wide variety of wild flowers and plenty of pollen. Growing colorful flowers or plants that bloom at different seasons to make sure that you have bee-friendly plants in your garden will draw those bees in. Maine bees specifically love wildflowers or native flowers as they often produce more pollen and nectar than other more hybridized flowers.
The Difference Between Bees and Wasps
Now, many people think that when they see a wasp hive in the corner of the roof that they have bees, oh no! But don’t be deceived by these aggressive, stinging insects that are nothing like the helpful pollinators. Yellow Jackets and Wasps will make nests made out of chewed wood that will look like gray papery mounds, and can grow quite large if left untreated. While Bees nests, more commonly known as hives, are constructed from beeswax sheets called combs. These are the traditional hexagonal shape, and are created to form the hive which can vary in shape and size.
While both wasps and bees both lay eggs and hatch into larvae that eventually become adults, their life is quite different. Bees are herbivores, they survive on pollen and nectar. Wasps on the other hand are predators, hunting other insects including Maine bees that you may want to keep around. Both insects can sting, honey bees can only sting once, and they usually only sting in self defense. Whereas wasps can sting multiple times and are known to be more aggressive.
Honey Bees in Maine
Oddly enough, the Honey Bee is not native to Maine. The Western Honey Bee was introduced to Maine through beekeepers and now we are lucky enough to have nearly 10,000 registered hives in the state of Maine. And in order to keep our bees safe, there is even an Apiary (Honey Bee) Program in the State of Maine. Trying to keep the bees we have safe from diseases and parasites. In Honey bee colonies there is a queen, worker bees and drone bees. The workers are all female and they forage, clean, guard the hive, and protect the larvae. The drone bees are all male and their job is to mate with other queens. And because they are not meant to protect, they cannot sting.The queen bee is slightly larger, with a longer abdomen. The queen in the colony can lay between 1,000 to 2,000 eggs in the spring or summer.
We understand that you may want to keep the pollinator bees around your home and garden. So when we come to service your home, please let us know, so we can keep them safe and healthy. Call us for a consultation today. We look forward to meeting you.