My bee houses have been rewarding me with lots of activity from the Osmia cornuta in the past weeks. I’m sure they don’t need any help to find hollow nesting places but when they choose my hollow bamboo canes or drilled-out wood I have the pleasure of watching their antics.
The first I know that some bees have hatched is the frantic activity of the males. This 17 second video gives you an idea of what it looks like.
I admire the tenacity of the males who guard the holes against all comers. You can get the idea in this 16 second video.
The male can be easily recognised by the little tuft of white hair on his head. They are around several weeks before the females eventually hatch and then the excitement really mounts.
The mating is not an elegant affair and this pair managed to get stuck in the tube in a sort of impasse where neither was prepared to cede defeat.
I noticed this mating pair under the box and I was surprised by the females stoic non-resistance. That was until I saw the photograph on the computer and noticed that the male had a firm grip on her wings and back legs.
The male eventually decided to dismount and release her.
The female is a very attractive bee and is larger than the male, which is not uncommon in bees. She lays her eggs in hollow stems or crevices and supplies the future larvae with pollen for nourishment. She pushes the pollen firmly in place with the help of two little horns on her head.
The horns are under the antennae and as the horns are black they are difficult to see amongst the black hairs of her head. They are best seen in a photograph.
Once the females have emerged they begin their frantic search for the perfect hole. Despite the abundance of choice from our point of view the females have a need to explore.
Eventually one will meet her high requirements and the egg laying and pollen collection will begin.
Pollen collecting is a serious business even if putting it in place can get a bit messy.
Bees in a French Garden 
Reblogged this on a french garden and commented:
Warning! This blog has a high bee content so only if you are interested in the bees as well as the garden :).
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Great ideas!
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Do you have a bee/insect house that you can watch? Amelia
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I would love to know how you situate your nesting canes/drilled holes. Are they in full sun?
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I have placed a lot of different bee houses around the garden and selected different orientations to test which direction is most popular. They have all been used but it is the ones with the longest hours of full sunlight that are the most popular. Also the bees do not really need our help but it is for us to have the pleasure of watching them. So it is very convenient that they like the sunny sites as it is more pleasant to watch them in the sunshine and easier to get good photographs for a record. Amelia
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I saw a wasp today (inside) but no bees yet.
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Your bees will be waiting until your weather eventually takes a turn for the better. It must come soon. Amelia
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Our granddaughters built a bug hotel for the garden last year. I haven’t yet seen bees using the bamboo canes, a bumble bee used one of the bird nest boxes. Do you know if we have that spieces of bee in the U.K.. I have seen masonry and leaf cutter bees.
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You don’t get Osmia cornuta in the U.K. but soon, we will both be seeing a very similar one – Osmia bicornis. You may well have/get that one in the bug hotel and also the leaf cutters later. It is nice to have the bumble bees in a nest box. Mine have been in the soil (B. terrestris) and in our stone walls (B. lapidarius). Amelia
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Such lovely photos and videos, very special to see. Wish I could spend some time in your garden watching the bees come and go! This is the next best thing.
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Well, if you ever get over to France you would be more than welcome :). Amelia
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Fascinating post and wonderful videos . I was just watching black and red bees on black thorn flowers today and wonder if they were the same, must check the bee hotel I have ignored this spring. Thank you!
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It does sound like them. You will get a lot of bees if you have black thorn nearby. Amelia
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Very interesting and lovely pictures, the Osmia bicornis here are still some weeks away from emerging. I have been experiencing some problems with bee hotels, they get serious attacks of mites and I am beginning to think that new tubes are needed quite often. Have you experienced any problems?
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I have not changed my tubes and I have left the same holes in the wood. I have not seen mites on the Osmia. I have seen very suspicious flies around the boxes this year but then I saw two lizards on a box with flies. That made me think the lizards could be keeping them clean and not just be pests that knock out the tubes. There are mites in bumble bee nests that only feed on the nest debris. It is very difficult to tell what damage the mites are doing. Amelia
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Your bee hotel is so attractive. you’ve inspired me Amelia; I know there are lots of bees who find nesting places in the garden but you’re right it would be lovely to be able to watch their antics.
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They are not hard to make (well actually, I just get Kourosh to make them, so it is very easy for me.) I think it is the fun of seeing what will nest there. Perhaps you would get different things in Italy. Amelia
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That looks a very promising start to the spring, Amelia. We’ve returned from a trip to find one housefly poking around the tubes, sneering (as far as I can make out). Any bee of any kind would be welcome right now… RH
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I think it is a bit early yet for the U.K. Things will hot up in a little while. Amelia
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