Surely on some occasion you have suffered in your rose bushes the effects caused by this insect, the Leaf Cutter Bee as its name indicates, it does exactly that, cut the leaves of the rose bushes , with the purpose of carrying out its characteristic nest. After the prank you will be able to easily identify the person responsible, since the cutter bee usually leaves some semicircular or circular holes in the leaves of the rose bushes.
Have you ever noticed that the leaves of your rosebush are cut or have holes?
Index
- 1 How and why does the bee cut the leaf?
- 2 Leafcutter Bee only causes cosmetic damage
How and why does the bee cut the leaf?
If the answer is yes, you should know that the culprit is nothing more than a bee that has solitary habits . The leaf cutter bee scientifically called Megachile centuncularis, is also known by some other names such as the rose bee or leaf sawing bee , these names have been given to it because this bee makes some cuts in the leaves of plants, especially in rose bushes, however it also does so in some other plants.
It is very easy to identify this bee , since the circular cuts it makes give it away. You can know that it is the cuts of the cutter bee, because they usually start from the edge of the leaves and although it seems strange, they never cut the central nerve, however, that is why it is possible to confuse it with that pest attack that everyone fears: the false caterpillar of the rosebush .
However, in this article we will help you to know that the symptoms of both are very different.
Since it is a bee, the Megachile centuncularis is part of the Hymenoptera order , the same order to which both ants and wasps belong, and this type of bee is distinguished from the domestic bee called Apis mellifera, not so much by its appearance, but by its behavior: the Leafcutter Bee does not coexist within a community as in the case of its relatives, instead it is an insect that has less vulgar habits .
The female cutter bee usually hides her nest in the vicinity of the place; in any opening she can find, be it in the walls, the floor, the trunks, and even in the plant pots. There she will make several cylindrical compartments in which she will then place her eggs along with the necessary provisions for the larvae and that is where the crux of the matter lies.
The raw material of the cutter bee turns out to be pieces of leaves , which are parts that it cuts with its jaws in just a few seconds. It cuts the pieces of the sheet and then walks away with these small pieces between its legs, and then continues with its work away from any possible gaze, although later they return for more until they manage to finish their creation.
The Leafcutter Bee only causes aesthetic damage
Despite what it might seem, the damage caused by the cutter bee is usually not significant, but it is more of an aesthetic flaw than anything else. There are even some people who forgive the damage to their rose bushes if in return they have the opportunity to see this bee. However, they have something in their favor and that is that the cutter bees turn out to be excellent pollinators.
As mentioned above and except for certain rare cases, the damage is generally not significant , but if you still choose to intervene, try to make your response appropriate. Remember that insecticide products that can be effective are usually broad-spectrum, so they will also cause damage not only to cutter bees but to other insects that are beneficial, such as honey bees and some others, so you should think if it is really worth using insecticides.
