Ivy Bees

The Ivy Bee, Colletes hederae

Every September, the path up to St Mary's Church becomes the backdrop for bee frenzy.  The ivy bees know it's their time, and they  emerge from holes in the banks which flank the path to the church. The males are first to emerge, and they only have one interest - finding the females. So they fly backwards and forwards, backwards and forwards, till you can almost hear them crying frustratedly, Where are they? where are they? The females take their time, but when they do come out, the males rush at them. You'll see undignified scrums as multiple males try to get at one and mate. If it was us, we'd call it a gang bang.

Ivy bees are solitary bees. They nest in the ground, and each female digs her own nest hole. You will find them in great aggregations. Hard to say if it's because they LIKE to nest close to each other, or if it's just that the site is too good to waste and so they all pack in together.

Ivy bees only arrived in England in 2001, but you feel that here was a niche which was waiting to be filled. Certainly they've done well. They've advanced up England and now reached Scotland. 

Ivy bees feed almost exclusively on ivy flowers. There's really no reason for them to look any further: there is so much ivy everywhere, and ivy bees emerge just as the ivy flowers. And when the ivy is over, you'll see no more ivy bees. By then their work is done - the foundation laid for the next generation, and this generation - males and females - now dies. 

Ivy bees look a bit waspy, or indeed like honey bees - furry on the head and thorax, and a yellow and black striped abdomen. They have yellow hairs on their legs. The females collect pollen in pollen baskets on their back legs, which you'll see as a big yellow blob. If you watch you'll see the females digging out their nest hole.  The hole is given side chambers, and in each the female will lay an egg, together with a little pollen store. When she's filled her hole with eggs, she seals it up and that is her work done. All traces of her digging will gradually disappear, and soon you'd never know that the bank is full of next year's ivy bees.

It's hard for we humans to comprehend an ivy bee's life. Most of it is lived beneath ground. The active adult part - the part that we see - lasts only about 6 weeks. But while they're with us, they are great fun to watch. The mad males, endlessly patrolling, whizzing around, occasionally trying to jump a female. And the female bees, foraging on ivy, then trying to make as fast an entrance as possible to their nest hole, before another of those pesky males jumps them.

I'm pleased to say that the community at St Mary's is quite accepting of its ivy bees. A small sign is placed on the gate to say that the bees on the bank are ivy bees, for the benefit of those who ccan't tell a bee from a wasp. 

I should also add that ivy bees are incredibly good-natured, and far too busy with their bee business to take the slightest bit of notice of passing humans!

Uploaded August 2026