Why is mud so important to red masons bees?

Red mason female bees, after emerging from their cocoons, feed up ready for their arduous and hard working life ahead. After mating they go in search of a suitable cavity to lay their eggs and forage for their own food and that of their offspring. Each female will select a suitable cavity and fight to keep it. They need 3 basic requirements, food, nest site and mud, all nearby. Without any one of these they will not nest there at all. Simple as that. The video explains why mud is so important.

Nurturing Nature-mud supplier!

Nurturing Nature-mud supplier!

 

The tray contains water, slate and mud from a nearby dried pond, the site as seen in the video. It is watered on the slates which keeps the mud surface dry. The bees don’t like walking on wet muddy soil. In the middle of it is a depression. I have found that the bees fly into the the depression and start digging downwards or sidewards. This system works every time. The tray is placed about 5 feet from the nest box and easy for them to find. This keeps their time away from the nest site to a minimum for various reasons.  Get yours ready now!

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