I saw this exchange in rec.gardens on the net, and found myself wondering. (I pointed out that carpenter bees are solitary, to the best of my knowledge, but these sound more like something bumblebee-ish. Hairy, black, and colonial.) I'd be interested to learn what these might be, as this is a new one on me. (I've tried to sooth the fears of both Bob and the original poster that these are no "dangerous" killer bees. I don't understand why so many people freak out over the mere concept of bees in the area!) included posting: _________________ > Many carpenter bees appear to have colonized the bannister next > to our front door (the only entrance to our condo). Are these large hairy black bees? If so, I think I have a similar problem. A small colony has set up shop in a shelf in my greenhouse. They have two round entrances to their hive(?) on the bottom of the shelf. They seem to like nectar-producing plants, and often come home covered with pollen. I can hear them gnawing new passages in the shelf, and they've made quite a pile of redwood dust. They seem to be careful about not making extraneous openings, which is remarkable since the shelf is barely thicker than their door. At first I tried putting a glass jar over the one opening they seemed to prefer, and after a day or so had three comatose bees in the bottom of the jar. They seem to be back, however. I suspect if I persisted in the jar trapping, I would eventually get them all, but I've been ignoring them for a couple of weeks. Are these bees dangerous? How much of the shelf can I expect them to remove? Bob From: [log in to unmask] (Bob Jewett) Subject: Re: Help! Carpenter Bees! ------------------------------------------------