Late Winter Mason bee update

About two weeks ago I started seeing males emerge from their cocoons. And about a week ago I started to see the females too. The males tend to come out first and then the females so that's normal. With only a few days until spring glad to see alot of bee activity.

We are still getting cold mornings, sometimes in the 30s. And I've been seeing the little bees take cover in little holes around the property. One of those spots is where there is a knot in the wood of my workbench. Its only an inch deep or less. But three Male mason bees are hiding in there when its cold and dark outside.

Above is a picture of where they are hiding.. only one of many spots where these bees take cover when the weather is not so good for them. With rain in the forecast I think they will be taking cover for the next few days.

I have put the last of the cocoons outside and they are starting to emerge. Hoping to see them start visiting my bee boards so far. But as of right now I've mostly seen males flying around and female here or there.

I wrote a post a few days ago talking about how some started building a home in my water hose. So I know the females are out and about. Just they have not used the homes I want them to use yet.

Some females were spotted taking cover in some of the bee boards. But I dont think they were building in there yet. Appears two of them are in the same hole just like the males were doing.

Taking cover in these homes is normal. When they do start laying larva in these holes they tend to hang out in them when it's dark outside and or cold.

They are in the bottom right corner hole. It was a cold morning so makes sense. But I wonder when they will start using the homes for reproduction and not just shelter.

I have seen the bees all over the property. Last year I saw them mating on the side of my house and up on the deck. But this year I do not see alot of activity in those spots. But I do see them all around my wood chips. So possible they have just changed their mating location preference to all the mulch.

I have captured some good video and macro images of a mason bee chewing its way out of the cocoon. Need to edit it and get to posting it. And as soon as the females start using the bee boards I will turn on my webcam and start streaming to VIMM.