More visitors in the bumblebee nest
2nd July 2010, FridayThe red-tailed bumblebees in my nest box seem to be suffering. At a time when numbers should be building up to a high level, there are few movements in and out of the nest. This might be due to the moth larvae I referred to earlier, although the current drought seems to be impacting on their food supply with many of the flowers used by the bee in our area shrivelling up.
Another resident in the nest box is the moth below, which scurries around the box when disturbed.
It is the brown house moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella, whose larvae feed on organic debris, and could be attracted by the bumblebee nest, or the old bird nests. Other unexpected visitors were large numbers of ants (30+), marching up the wall and into the nest box, presumeably attracted to feed on material in the bumblebee nest. (Thanks to Sean Clancy for help identifying the moth)