Ashy mining bee by Wendy Carter
If I told you that small bees dig tunnels, I wouldn't be surprised if you laughed at me. Welcome to the world of mining bees!
We’re all familiar with fuzzy-buzzy bumblebees but what about their smaller cousins that flit between flowers in our gardens and green spaces, pollinating plants and crops? There are more than 250 species of bee in the UK and around 65 of those are miners…solitary bees that dig tunnels into short turf and bare ground in order to create a safe space for their offspring.
Yellow-legged mining bee by Wendy Carter
What do I mean by ‘solitary’ bee? You're probably aware of the social nature of bumblebees, where each individual works together for the benefit of the whole colony. Solitary bees, by contrast, work alone – females each create their own nests and provision their own young with food. They often nest in large aggregations - you'll see many mini-molehills and lots of bees coming and going - but they won’t be using the same nest.
Mining bee mums dig tunnels up to one metre long; an incredible feat for a such a small insect. Towards the end of each tunnel she’ll excavate a series of chambers and within each of these she’ll lay an egg. As if this wasn't hard work enough, she then has to collect pollen and carry it back to each chamber, leaving enough pollen to provide the young bee with plenty of food to devour in order to develop into the next generation.
Mining bees are found in lots of different habitats. Some are fussy about where they dig but others are as happy in your flower beds as they would be in a nature reserve. Two of the most striking (and easily identified) species that you might come across in your garden or local greenspace are ashy and tawny mining bees. Depending on the weather, you could see them at any point from March through to May or even early June.
Tawny mining bee by Wendy Carter
Ashy mining bees are a beautiful silvery grey and black (the photo at the top of this blog is of a male ashy mining bee). Females have a shiny black abdomen with a mint humbug-like thorax – a black central patch that’s surrounded by a ring of silvery hairs. Both males and females have a silvery moustache but the males are smaller with silvery hairs on the abdomen. I think that female tawny mining bees look like they’re wearing a sumptuous evening gown; they’re covered in dense fox-coloured hairs. Taken with mainly black legs and a black face, this glorious combination make for a very distinctive bee. Males are smaller and covered in brown hairs but are similar to a number of other species so are tricky to identify.
Like their stripy bumblebee cousins, solitary bees are in trouble. We can help, though. We can ensure that our gardens and local greenspaces have got plenty of nectar and pollen rich plants. From early blooms like snowdrops and aconites through lavender, rosemary, cosmos, pot marigold and alliums to Michaelmas daisies and winter heather or mahonia – the more you plant, the more you’ll help. We can also be a little more relaxed about how these spaces look. Solitary bees love spring blossom but they’re also partial to dandelions and clover so please try to leave a few dotted around and perhaps leave an area of lawn unmown. Don’t forget to ditch the chemical bug-killers – a healthy garden will support a huge range of wildlife that will do the job for you. If we all do a little something, we'll make a big difference for our buzzing buddies.
