# Bumble bee homes



## bigbearomaha

I have used simple square wood boxes with a top entrance in the lid.

a 12 inch square box is usually big enough.


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## Michael Bush

UNL had some references for bumble bees on their etymology site. You might search there.


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## Oldtimer

This is what I did, the bees did well but the box was too small the nest quickly outgrew it. Surprising how fast the nest expands. 
Normal hive in the background gives an idea of size.


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## Stingy

Try making a nice color copy of this webpage.
http://www.bumblebee.org/NorthAmerica.htm


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## iwombat

One of the locals here uses the medium size flat-rate shipping boxes from USPS. They're free too.


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## dkvello

Thank you all for the insite. Great photos and website.

Dave


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## chillardbee

For anyone who's serious about finding, identifying, starting, and raising bumble bees, i sugest the book 'the humble bee' it is an older book but very informative.


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## Omie

Are skunks or possums a problem as vandals to bumble bee nest boxes?


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## Michael Bush

Oldtimer, how'd you get the bees in the box? Did you bait them to get them to move in or transplant them?


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## Oldtimer

Totally easy, I do some bee removal work, in this case the bumblebees were in some rubbish under someones house. The people insisted I did not kill them so I just scooped the whole thing into a cardboard box and took them home.

I noticed they had a queen and seemed healthy so I took the time & made a more permanent wooden home for them. In the pic you do not see the nest proper, because they put a little cover over it made of whatever materials they have to hand, held together with wax and propolis. Under the untidy looking fluffy stuff you can see in the pic, is the nest, which is made of an untidy pile of cocoons and honey pots, which look a bit like acorns and acorn cups.


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## chillardbee

Omie said:


> Are skunks or possums a problem as vandals to bumble bee nest boxes?


Yes they are. It's important to make sure that your boxs are protected so that they can't get to them. I had a possum over turn my nest and ate all the brood and goodies, I learnt my lesson well on that one.


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## Omie

i see a common design for bumble bee nest boxes has two chambers- a nest chamber and a 'vestibule' empty chamber where they first go in the opening. What is the purpose of this two-room box, and is it necessary to have two chambers?


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## Oldtimer

That's commercial nests where they keep them locked in, they use one chamber as a toilet.


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## chillardbee

In the 'humblebee" there are designs for making the bumblebee homes. the most intigrated one has a vestibule and layers you can add to it. the simplest one is made with a upside down clay pot under ground with a board and sod on top. I don't think it's entirely neccessary to have a vestibule.


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## bfriendly

The 2 chamber boxes are indeed used commercially - they capture bumblebee queens (or lure them into the boxes) in the early spring when they are searching for nests, and lock them in with a clump of (honey bee) pollen. After she has started laying and developing her nest, then they are free flying.


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## brac

Commercial bumblebees? commercial implies profit? How would $ be made from bumbles?


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## Oldtimer

Pollination of tomatoes in greenhouses.


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## beemandan

brac said:


> How would $ be made from bumbles?


There are a couple of outfits in N America that sell bumble bee colony/boxes. Their biggest market, I'm told, is pollination in greenhouses.


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## johng

i saw my first bumble bee of the year yesterday. hopefully I can get one to move into the house I put out for them.


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## Renthorin

I just bought a bumblebee house off EBAY. I will probably make a few more myself, but not sure I'll get around to it this year.

Was 36 bucks shipped so I can live with that 

It has two rooms, comes with nesting material, seems weathertight.


Will


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## chillardbee

Very nice will. Hope you get a good nest started this year. Pics please.


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## Renthorin

I will most definitely post picts of it installed and hopefully when occupied.

here is the house...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200558721887&rvr_id=211779465733&mfe=sidebar


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## kincade

Renthorin said:


> I will most definitely post picts of it installed and hopefully when occupied.
> 
> here is the house...
> 
> http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200558721887&rvr_id=211779465733&mfe=sidebar


I just purchased this one:

http://www.knoxcellars.com/Merchant..._Code=KCNP&Product_Code=HBOH&Category_Code=SS

It showed up within a few days of order and appeared to be very well made. Even came with a little booklet!


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## Renthorin

Sweetness! I may get one of those too 

Found this on Amazon...

http://www.amazon.com/Esschert-Desi...TF8&coliid=I3B3435Q8TW4Q3&colid=2JUVTO0FTQM27


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## Seattleite

"Befriending BumbleBees: A practical guide to raising local bumble bees" says you have to go out and catch a queen with a net, but that seems like a lot of work.

I think the main technique is to simply hope one shows up and likes your box.

You can buy them from commercial suppliers, but you'll be shelling out $200-$400.

Buy that book here:
https://shop-secure.extension.umn.edu/PublicationDetail.aspx?ID=1902


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## Oldtimer

Not that hard to catch a queen bumblebee. 

In early spring, any very large bumblebees you see flying around will be a mated queen, come out of her winter hibernation. If she is flying around looking in cracks and crevises, - perfect, she is looking for a nesting site.

Even if she is working flowers and has pollen on her legs, she may still be caught but would have to be confined in your nest along with a food supply until she has started a nest.

Much to know about how to do that, for example the food cannot be mature honey, not enough water. Honey can be used but must be well watered down. Too much to write about it here but it's available in books, and likely the net.


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## Renthorin

My new bumble home from Amazon (link above) just arrived. Now I have a question.

There are holes in the Queen chamber, covered with fine screen, presumably for ventilation. When I close the hinged roof, it doesn't fit well and this leaves a 1/4 gap between the roof and front wall, down the entire length of the front.

I assume this is bad? My thought is if it were for ventilation it too would be screened. I can tack a small piece of wood there to close the gap.

Just want some other opinions on if that gap should be there.

Will


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## Omie

Renthorin said:


> My new bumble home from Amazon (link above) just arrived. Now I have a question.


I ordered two of those same boxes from Amazon after seeing your post. Mine are supposed to arrive in the next 3 or 4 days. Interested in seeing if there is a gap in mine as well.
Now I have to figure out what to use for nesting fluff....
Suggestions?- (assuming I don't have any used mouse nests about) 
I thought of buying a package of spaghnum moss (spelling?) like they use for orchid baskets.


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## Renthorin

There is a small instruction card in with the bee house that says (in 6 different languages)...

Chose the location for the bumble bee house carefully. Place it on a brick. Do not place the bumble bee house in full sunlight. Ideally the box should warm up in the sun during the morning hours and be in the shade for the rest of the day. Give some bedding and pillow material in the inside, for example litter or wood fiber.

A) I have no bricks. I'll just find a spot off the ground I guess
b) litter? As in cat litter? Uh...no
c) what is wood fiber? Sounds like a breakfast cereal.

I plan to put some upholstery stuffing inside mine, maybe some dog hair from one of my Siberians.

Will


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## chillardbee

I think they mean like saw dust type stuff. I will probaly try the fibers from a matteress too. you can also try that fluffy stuff from for mice that you can buy from the pet store. thanks for the pic, i think i'll try making something like that as well.


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## Oldtimer

Cotton wool is good. Lots of it, fluffed up.


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## WI-beek

Anyone know if there is a Market for Bumble Bee pollination services in Wisconsin? How many strains are used?

There must also be crops that honeybees will ignore and bumble bees will pollinate. I see many flowers that honeybees dont bother with and the bumbles work constantly.

How about selling them? What do you get for a nest? How large do they get in numbers? When do they Start reproducing queens, all summer or is it only in fall?

This sounds interesting. I see lots of the large queens buzzing around in early spring. I could easily net A bunch and start raising them. I will have to read up on this stuff.

IF anyone can point me to good info about raising Bumble Bees, etc i would appreciate it.

Thank You


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## Oldtimer

Googled and found this http://www.hornetnestsfreeremoval.com/29601.html
however he sounds fairly small time there are large bumblebee breeders but i couldn't find them by Google.

In my country bumblebees are raised commercially and sold to greenhouse tomato growers, by these guys
http://www.zonda.net.nz/
The queens are no longer wild caught they raise their own.


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## WI-beek

Thanks old timer. I found that as well. I also found this guide to raising bumble bees.

Whoops, cant post that link I guess. If you copy and paste

Raising Bumble Bees at Home: 
A Guide to Getting Started 
By James P. Strange PhD 
USDA-ARS, Pollinating Insect Research Unit 
Logan, UT 

into google you should find it.

I guess if I do catch and raise some I could call some of the raspberry, strawberry, cranberry, and such growers and see if they are interested in renting or buying them.


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## Walliebee

The bumblebee queens emerged from winter hibernation in central NC today. I saw several searching for potential nesting sites. Get those boxes ready!


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## kincade

I haven't seen the Amazon box in person... But FWIW, the Knox house seems to be very well made, fits tightly, has an observation window (plexi) to watch the bumblebees without taking off the roof, and comes with bedding and a booklet. 

It seems like a complete package, and since they specialize in Mason bees I would assume they know what they are doing.


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## Renthorin

Walliebee said:


> The bumblebee queens emerged from winter hibernation in central NC today. I saw several searching for potential nesting sites. Get those boxes ready!


Wow...we still have 8 inches of snow on the ground


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## Omie

Renthorin said:


> My new bumble home from Amazon (link above) just arrived. Now I have a question.
> There are holes in the Queen chamber, covered with fine screen, presumably for ventilation. When I close the hinged roof, it doesn't fit well and this leaves a 1/4 gap between the roof and front wall, down the entire length of the front.
> I assume this is bad? My thought is if it were for ventilation it too would be screened. I can tack a small piece of wood there to close the gap.
> Just want some other opinions on if that gap should be there.
> Will


Hi again....
My two boxes arrived today. The same ones as the one you got:
http://www.amazon.com/Esschert-Desi...2?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1298940780&sr=1-2
Yes they have a small 3/16" gap along the front closing edge due to a defect in matching the roof angles when constructing. The gap is not meant to be there. Other than that they are charming and well made. The metal roof is nice.
I suspect they _all_ might be made the same way with a manufacturing gap, not just something like a crack where you could get a non-defective replacement easily. probably good to state this in a customer review on Amazon.

I decided not to bother trying to return my two- the hassle of returning is sometimes not worth it if something can be easily made to work right. My husband offered to plane the surfaces to fit well, but we realized it would be much simpler to just cut a paint stirring stick to fit along the front edge of the box bottom to close up the gap. This would be easily glued along the top front edge of the box part (not the roof part), all along the front. For the 1' or so on the sides that need gap-reduction, I could just glue in a small piece of popsicle stick to cover any gap there. In fact, glueing popsicle sticks onto the top front box edges may be enough to close any gaps up fairly well anyway. I have pop-sticks anyway for glueing into my foundationless hive frames as starter strips. I think I will close the gap up myself this way, likely cutting and laying a paint stirrer stick lengthwise and gluing it to cover up the gap.

Yes, it's annoying, but I don't want to spend my time on making exchanges and more shipping back and forth. It should work fine after glueing thin sticks in to close the gap.

I thought of using some dryer lint for bedding, maybe mixing with dry moss for potting orchids...? My dryer lint has lots of cat hair in it, so that might be similar to mouse nest fur! I could gather up dryer lint for a while (without using any fabric softener).
I was in a big pet store the other day, and could kick myself for not asking for a small baggie of well used mouse bedding there from their giant aquarium of mice -God knows I spent enough money there that day! :lpf:

Knowing the apparent rather low rate of success for most bumble bee nesting boxes, I am not getting my hopes up too much. Mason bees seem much easier to attract with nesting boxes. I'll be _thrilled_ of I get any bumble action in one of these. You never know until you try, right?


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## Renthorin

the distributor of the house on Amazon just wrote me:

I checked out all our bee houses and there is 1/4 inch gap on all of them so I'd assume that this will not stop them from making their home in the box. 

I replied back that if they went to the trouble of putting fine screen over the vent holes to keep ants out......ummm......a 1/4" gap running the entire length of the house??? Really?

I plan to use rope caulk


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## gkervitsky

Found this interesting study on rearing bumble bees in a Czech Lab. Excellent photo documentation.

http://www.sci.muni.cz/ptacek/RearingBumbleBees VP.pdf


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## Oldtimer

Best internet site on bumblebee breeding I've ever seen!


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## gkervitsky

The following document is a "Fair Use" PDF copy of Managing Alternative Pollinators: A Handbook for Beekeepers, Growers, and Conservationists.
SARE Handbook 11, NRAES-186
By Eric Mader, Marla Spivak, and Elaine Evans
Co-published by SARE and NRAES, February 2010

This PDF file is for viewing only. If a paper copy is needed, you are encourage to purchase a copy.

It addresses lots of good info on alternative pollinators. 
http://host31.spidergraphics.com/nra/doc/Fair Use Web PDFs/NRAES-186_Web.pdf


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## Honeycomb

Is it ok if there is a quarter inch gap of space across the floor of a bumble bee house? Mine was not nailed in correctly on the bottom. It seems like bugs would get in and make it harder for the bees to guard against invaders.


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## chillardbee

Thanks for posting that link GKervitsky. I was thinking that I'd set out the bumblebee homes in the hopes that one might make a nest in it but now seeing that, it looks like i might try locating queens and try to establish them in there. Also, I like the idea of overwintering the mated queens and establishing them the next year.


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## chillardbee

Well guys, I've seen the first of the bumbles waking up. a Bombus melanopygus and a Bombus vosnesenskii. I've made up 8 home with the thought of success is in numbers. I've vertually picking my yard clean of moss (good for the lawn too) and dried it. This monday i'll be putting cake on the hives and reversing so there's gonna be a good chance to get some mouse nest material. guy's, I have to tell ya, I'm suffering gold fever, or rather bumble bee fever.

I found another site also that was very good.
http://www.seeds.ca/proj/poll/index.php?n=Bumblebees

By the way, the Sphagnum moss i've been collect is in my opinion ideal. I've gone out with a fork and picked it out of the grass, it works very nice. after drying it I put my hand in it and it just radiates the heat back quite surprisingly. it's easy to form a nest out of too.

Going back to the homes i've made, I made them easy and cheap, more of a rough cut and slaped them together. In reading parts of Sladens "the humble bee and a bit from what I gather from the internet, I think I've got a good chance to get a couple started this year. 

I'll get photo's asap.


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## Renthorin

what are your temps up there? I ask as in Michigan we are currently 25 degrees Fahrenheit and 8 degrees last night.

I haven't even seen house flies


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## chillardbee

we're at 56 to 62 highs and 40 lows. also, that link i posted above has a pdf file to download, that is a great paper on starting bumblebees.

don't worry, the weather will be good in next to no time. the good thing about bumble bees is there are early and late species.


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## Oldtimer

For your viewing pleasure , pics of a big fat queen I spotted today.

In my country we will soon be going into winter. This is a young queen, at the moment she is foraging for her colony just like a worker. But in a month or two she will find somewhere to hibernate, and hopefully emerge next spring to start a new nest.

There is always something pleasing about the site of a big healthy bumblebee!


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## Renthorin

That is a beautiful picture  Thanks for sharing.

To be politically correct (which I rarely am) she is not a big, fat queen...she is merely 'big winged' 

I hope to share some nice picts from my yard this spring but so far is it all brown grass and lingering snow piles...bleh...


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## Oldtimer

Lol!


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## Omie

Renthorin said:


> To be politically correct (which I rarely am) she is not a big, fat queen...she is merely 'big winged'


Or 'big extoskeletoned'. :lpf:


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## chillardbee

that looks like a bombus lucorum


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## frostygoat

gkervitsky said:


> The following document is a "Fair Use" PDF copy of Managing Alternative Pollinators: A Handbook for Beekeepers, Growers, and Conservationists.
> SARE Handbook 11, NRAES-186
> By Eric Mader, Marla Spivak, and Elaine Evans
> Co-published by SARE and NRAES, February 2010
> 
> This PDF file is for viewing only. If a paper copy is needed, you are encourage to purchase a copy.
> 
> It addresses lots of good info on alternative pollinators.
> http://host31.spidergraphics.com/nra/doc/Fair Use Web PDFs/NRAES-186_Web.pdf


That is an excellent publication. Thanks.


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## Oldtimer

It's a bombus terrestris, and can be identified by the black waist combined with the broad yellow and orange band across the abdomen, no other NZ bumblebee has that combination.

We only have 4 species of bumblebee in NZ and lucorum is not one of them. However I googled lucorum and found that they can look very similar to terrestris, there was some discussion as to how to tell the difference.

Also discovered another interesting thing, some Scottish research, they found species ID is further complicated because many bumblebee species will all take on similar markings in certain areas, but in a different area the markings will be different from the other area, but similar across the species. It was hypothesised this could be because potential predators like birds will identify a particular color scheme as not to be messed with, so all bumblebees in an area will take on that color scheme. But that's just a theory.

Interesting little things.

.


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## chillardbee

Bombus terrestris was my second choice. In sladens 'The humble bee' terrestris is known as the large earth bumble bee while the lucorum is known as the small earth bumble bee but the markings are very similar.


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## chillardbee

Well, I got a bumble nesting in one of my boxes I made, 3 in the eaves of the roof, one uder the skirting of our home and another in a dadant super thats seting on our deck, all in all, I think i've been successful. Also, there are still queens looking for more homes so there a good chance that the other 7 homes could see a nesting queen soon.


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## Oldtimer

Nice work. Sounds like they are not exactly endangered in your part of the world!


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## chillardbee

So I was at my Rosedale yard cleaning up the nuc boxes when I came across a old mouse nest with a queen bumble nesting it. she was buried in the nest so i grabbed the mound and put it in a bag until i got home but when i tried to put her in my box she flew away. she only a pollen mound on the go and hadn't layed eggs yet. 

update on the ones i have going, the one bumble in my bumble home has over a half a dozen little helpers now and the one in my super still has none but i see her bringing in pollen every day so she should have some helper soon too. in about 2 weeks time i'll check the ones in the eaves of the roof.


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## chillardbee

Hey guys

I was just thinking the other day about this. I would seem that If you get a bumble to nest in a box, particularly one that you've made several of, that at the end of the season when the queens are hatching and getting mated that they may remember that these type of boxes are acceptable as a home for next year. PS, So it is that building more boxes increases the chances of getting a bumble to nest in one of them, unfortunately the one that was nesting behind my shed was destroyed by a skunk or possum so take this as a warning and make sure you keep them up and out of harms way. I think this winter i'll design and build a couple hundred homes and place them around my bee yards.


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## johng

I just discovered I have some Bumbles in one of my bird houses!! I put up a wood pecker box about 15 feet up in a tree. I filled it will saw dust because I was told the wood peckers like to clean out their nest site. Well no wood peckers moved in but I now have some Bumble bees! They must be hot this afternoon because they are fanning at the front of the box just like my honey bees are.


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## robo mantis

johng said:


> I just discovered I have some Bumbles in one of my bird houses!! I put up a wood pecker box about 15 feet up in a tree. I filled it will saw dust because I was told the wood peckers like to clean out their nest site. Well no wood peckers moved in but I now have some Bumble bees! They must be hot this afternoon because they are fanning at the front of the box just like my honey bees are.



They were nesting in the straight sawdust? Nothing but sawdust? It an interesting observation since a lot of my colonies nested straight in the sawdust.


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## robo mantis

Oldtimer said:


> Even if she is working flowers and has pollen on her legs, she may still be caught but would have to be confined in your nest along with a food supply until she has started a nest.


Thats a BIG no no. If she has pollen... she most likely has a nest. If you catch her when she has pollen on her legs, you are probably starving her babies and killing a colony. At the very least is it her first foraging trip after finding a nest site. Basically... if she has pollen she most likely has a nest or a nest site chosen. Trapping her in a box will only mess things up. If you catch queens, catch the ones that are hovering over the grass and inspecting holes.


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## johng

Yes, nothing but saw dust. I'm hoping they come back next year too.


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## robo mantis

My bombus bimaculatus has soft nest materials and they ended up burrowing all the way into the sawdust bedding lol


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## Gypsi

I definitely have lots of useless nucs - maybe I should read that file and turn a couple into bumble houses. Do they have a color preference? (I painted my nucs, one red, one blue, one green, one yellow) I'll check the file for the rest of the specs


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## robo mantis

The color doesn't affect much.The entrance has an effect though. It should make the entrance hole look really noticeable. You can make bumble bee nest site fairly easily. I'm experimenting with different setups. I'm trying to use readily available containers to make into nest sites. I'm going to do lots of work this winter on that.


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