# White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee (*ceratina strenua*) The White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee is a tiny, buzzing helper in the garden! It loves to collect pollen and nectar from flowers to make sweet honey. - **Category:** [Insects](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/insect) - **Rarity:** Common - **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low - **Habitat:** These bees can be found in gardens, parks, and woodlands where there are plenty of flowers. - **Also known as:** Little Carpenter Bee, Striped Bee ![White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee](https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Redirect/file/Ceratina_strenua.jpg&width=800) Photo: USGS Native Bee Inventory and Monitoring Laboratory, Public domain · [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ceratina_strenua.jpg) ## Appearance The White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee is a small, slender bee, often sporting a shiny, dark metallic blue or green body. It has a distinctive white or pale yellow stripe across its face (clypeus), which makes it visually different from many other tiny bees. Its wings are clear with dark veins. ## Taxonomy - **Kingdom:** Animalia - **Phylum:** Arthropoda - **Class:** Insecta - **Order:** Hymenoptera - **Family:** Apidae - **Genus:** Ceratina ## Interesting facts - Each female bee lays her eggs in a line, creating separate rooms for each baby bee inside the stem. - These bees are often metallic blue or green, making them look like tiny flying jewels in the sun. - Unlike giant carpenter bees, these 'little' ones prefer to nest in the soft pith of plant stems! - When a baby bee grows up, it chews its way out of its tiny cell and then out of the stem! ## Special abilities - **Pith Tunneling Expert:** White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee can bore into soft plant stems because they have strong mandibles, which helps them create safe nurseries for their developing young. - **Pollen Carrying Hairs:** White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee has special branched hairs on its legs that help them carry pollen, ensuring their babies have food and plants are pollinated. - **Buzz Pollination Power:** White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee can vibrate its flight muscles rapidly to shake pollen from certain flowers, which helps them collect more food. ## Measurements & details - **Wingspan:** 8-12 mm - **Size:** 4-7 mm - **Lifespan:** 30-90 days - **Flight Speed:** 12 km/h - **Leg Count:** 6 - **Colony Size:** 1 ## Diet & Feeding These bees eat nectar for energy and pollen for protein, helping plants grow! - **Primary Foods:** nectar, pollen, flower sap - **Foraging Method:** Foraging ## Ecological connections - **Pollinates:** [Japanese Honeysuckle](https://www.snappit.app/explore/japanese-honeysuckle) (*Lonicera japonica*) — Helps this plant reproduce by carrying its pollen to other flowers. - **Pollinates:** Raspberry (*Rubus idaeus*) — An important pollinator for fruit-bearing plants like wild raspberries. - **Eaten by:** [Chinese Mantis](https://www.snappit.app/explore/chinese-mantis) (*Tenodera sinensis*) — These bees can become prey for larger predatory insects like mantises. - **Eaten by:** [Great Tit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/great-tit) (*Parus major*) — Small birds, such as tits, sometimes catch bees for food. ## Traits - [Striped](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/striped): Marked with parallel bands or lines of color. - [Solitary](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/solitary): Solitary animals live alone for most of their lives, only interacting with others for mating or parental care. - [Colorful](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/colorful): Colorful describes organisms or objects displaying a wide range of bright and distinct colors. - [Diurnal](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/diurnal): Diurnal animals are primarily active during daylight hours, typically resting or sleeping at night. - [Pollinator](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/pollinator): Describes organisms that transfer pollen, enabling the fertilization and reproduction of plants. ## Collections - [Insects](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/insects) ## Safety **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low No special safety notes yet. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How to identify White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee? Compare the antennae, wings, waist, body hair and legs. Yellow and black stripes show up on bees, wasps and harmless mimics alike. Bee & Wasp Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details. ### What is White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee's wingspan? 8-12 mm ### How big is White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee? 4-7 mm ### How long does White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee live? 30-90 days ### How fast can White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee fly? 12 km/h ### What does White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee eat? These bees eat nectar for energy and pollen for protein, helping plants grow! ### Where is White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee usually found? These bees can be found in gardens, parks, and woodlands where there are plenty of flowers. ### How does White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee hunt? Foraging ## Where to spot - [Bready Park](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/bready-park) — Virginia, US · Park ## More Insects - [Common Eastern Bumble Bee](https://www.snappit.app/explore/common-eastern-bumble-bee) (*Bombus impatiens*) - [Spotted Lanternfly](https://www.snappit.app/explore/spotted-lanternfly) (*Lycorma delicatula*) - [Brown-belted Bumble Bee](https://www.snappit.app/explore/brown-belted-bumble-bee) (*Bombus griseocollis*) - [Eastern Carpenter Bee](https://www.snappit.app/explore/eastern-carpenter-bee) (*Xylocopa virginica*) --- Source: [White-Striped Little Carpenter Bee Facts — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/white-striped-little-carpenter-bee)