Is this a carpenter bee
Wed, 04/09/2008 - 00:26 — mark_h_charles
p-moth-and-bee.jpg
p-moth-and-bee.jpgI think the black abdomen means it's a carpenter bee. Can anyone confirm this?
p-moth-and-bee.jpgI think the black abdomen means it's a carpenter bee. Can anyone confirm this?
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yes, the lower insect is the question
The skinny ant-like critter is a pompilid moth. They are predators on the crab spiders that live in milkweed blossoms.
Is this a carpenter bee
The insect on the top in profile does not appear to be a bee.
The lower one could be a bumble bee bombus, or a carpenter bee it is unclear in the picture. One way to tell them apart is to examine their rear end. The hind portion of the abdomen. If it is fuzzy it is likely one of the species of bumble bee, if it is shiny and not fuzzy it is likely a type of carpenter bee.
Carpenter Bee
It definitely looks like a carpenter bee. Could you email the picture to sfbee@sfsu.edu and I'll take a better look?