Ground bees...maybe??

8 years ago

My parents had an addition put on to their home this summer and around this area new gravel was laid out. Late this fall as the ground started getting moist these little mound started popping up in the gravel and dirt. These are not earthworms! We scraped one mound away and the hole/burrow is about pinky wide. The mounds (and they are mounds) are madeup of a collection of Pine-needles, twigs, and even more gravel. Material is being drug to the entrance. In fact a little twigs make it look like little flags proclaiming their territory. Now if these are ground bees I understand their beneficial & leave them alone. I fear for my parents and their cats that it might be a yellow jacket infestation. Has anyone seen anything like this before? We live up here in Springfield Oregon so it's wet and damp right now. And I swear some of the mounds look like they're getting bigger !

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (3)

docmom_gw
8 years ago
I don't think ground bees build up twigs around the entrance to their nests. But, neither do yellow jackets. I would simply observe for a while to see what is there.
Jean
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Too early for ground bees.

I'll still vote for worms.
Related Professionals
Orangeburg Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Fort Wayne Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Poplar Bluff Landscape Contractors · Toms River Landscape Contractors · Parkersburg Landscape Contractors · Gloucester Landscape Contractors · Bangor Landscape Contractors · Detroit Landscape Contractors · Williamsport Landscape Contractors · Show Low Landscape Contractors · Santa Barbara Landscape Contractors · Decatur General Contractors · Salina General Contractors · McAllen General Contractors · Alexandria General Contractors
Taryn Alves
Original Author
8 years ago
I take it back it is worms! Giant weird nocturnal mound building earthworms! Checking for one of the cats at mom's house late at night with the flashlight movement on the ground caught my eye. Huge freakishly long earthworms stretching from mound to mound! Soon as I got close enough the vibrations from my feet sent most sliding down the nearest burrow. Almost 30 years at this house and none of us have ever seen anything like this!! The mounds look nothing like earthworm cast mounds. All I can think of is that load of gravel must've had these in it. Will be interesting to see how the ecosystem in the backyard changes with this weird edition! Seriously the only time I saw worms this big/long was dissecting them in science class back in high school! Thankfully not yellow jackets but I was kind of looking forward to ground bees!