What are carpenter bees and do they sting?

Carpenter bees are large, solitary bees (about 1 inch long) with shiny black abdomens that bore round holes into wood to nest. Male carpenter bees hover aggressively near nesting sites but cannot sting — they have no stinger. Female carpenter bees do have stingers but rarely sting unless directly handled.

What is the difference between carpenter bees and bumblebees?

The key difference: carpenter bees have shiny, hairless black abdomens, while bumblebees have fuzzy yellow-and-black abdomens. Carpenter bees are solitary and bore holes in wood; bumblebees are colonial and nest underground or in wall voids. If you see round bore holes in wood with sawdust below them, those are carpenter bees — bumblebees do not damage wood.

How do I know if I have carpenter bees?

Signs of carpenter bee activity include: perfectly round, ½-inch diameter holes bored into exposed wood; sawdust (called frass) below the holes; large bees hovering repeatedly near the same spots on your home; and yellow pollen staining near bore hole entrances. The holes are typically found in eaves, fascia boards, decks, fences, and unpainted wood trim.

How do you get rid of carpenter bees?

Professional treatment involves injecting residual insecticide dust into active galleries, waiting for the bee to distribute the dust through the gallery, then sealing the holes with steel wool and wood filler. Exposed wood surfaces are treated with residual liquid insecticide to deter new boring. Painting or sealing all bare exterior wood is the most effective long-term prevention — carpenter bees strongly prefer unfinished wood.

Do carpenter bees come back every year?

Yes. Carpenter bees overwinter as adults in old galleries and emerge each spring to the same sites. Offspring from the previous year bore new galleries adjacent to existing ones. Without treatment, carpenter bee damage accumulates year over year — a board with one or two holes in year one can have 10 to 20 galleries by year five. Early spring treatment breaks this cycle.

How much does carpenter bee treatment cost in NYC?

Carpenter bee treatment in NYC and the NY metro area typically costs $150–$350 depending on the number of active galleries and the scope of surface treatment needed. Larger properties with multiple damage sites (deck plus eaves plus fence) are priced by scope. Control Exterminating provides free estimates — call (212) 696-4164.

When is the best time to treat carpenter bees in New York?

Early spring — April through May — is the optimal treatment window in New York. This is when females are actively boring new galleries before eggs are laid and sealed. Early treatment provides the best results and prevents a full season of gallery expansion. Summer treatment is still effective for stopping current-season damage and preventing fall re-entry into old galleries.

Carpenter Bees NYC

Carpenter bees are boring into wood on homes across NYC, Long Island, and Westchester right now. Here's how to identify them, stop the damage, and prevent them from returning.

If you've noticed large, black-and-yellow bees hovering near the eaves of your home, your wooden deck, or your fence in spring — those are almost certainly carpenter bees. Unlike honeybees, carpenter bees don't live in hives. They bore round, perfectly symmetrical holes into untreated wood to create nesting galleries, and they return to the same sites year after year. Left untreated, carpenter bee damage accumulates over multiple seasons, weakening structural wood. Control Exterminating has been treating carpenter bees across NYC, Long Island, Nassau County, Suffolk County, Westchester, and the NY metro region since 1973.

What Are Carpenter Bees?

Carpenter bees (Xylocopa virginica) are large native bees, about ¾ to 1 inch in length, with shiny black abdomens and yellow thoraxes — similar in appearance to bumblebees, but with a key difference: the carpenter bee's abdomen is bare and glossy, while the bumblebee's is fuzzy and yellow-banded. The males hover aggressively near nesting sites and may fly directly at people who approach — but male carpenter bees have no stinger. Females do have stingers but rarely sting unless handled directly.

Carpenter bees emerge in spring — typically April through May in the NYC metro area — when temperatures consistently reach 70°F. This is when the damage begins. The female bores a perfectly round hole about ½ inch in diameter into exposed wood, then turns 90 degrees and excavates a gallery running with the grain of the wood for 4 to 6 inches. She lays eggs in cells provisioned with pollen and nectar, then seals each cell with wood pulp. The same gallery is often expanded and reused over multiple years.

Carpenter Bee vs. Bumblebee: How to Tell the Difference

The two insects are frequently confused, but the distinction matters for treatment:

Carpenter bee: Shiny, hairless black abdomen. Large (about 1 inch). Solitary — not colonial. Bores holes in wood. Male hovers aggressively but cannot sting.
Bumblebee: Fuzzy yellow and black abdomen. Colonially nesting (underground, in old rodent burrows, or in wall voids). Does not bore wood. Females can sting.

If you see round bore holes in wood with sawdust below them, those are carpenter bees — not bumblebees. Bumblebees don't damage wood.

Where Carpenter Bees Damage Homes in NYC and Long Island

Carpenter bees prefer unpainted, weathered, or bare wood. In the NYC metro area, the most common damage sites include:

Eaves and fascia boards: The underside of roof overhangs, especially where paint has weathered, is a top target. In older homes in Nassau County, Suffolk County, and Westchester — where wood trim is decades old — carpenter bee activity on eaves is extremely common.
Decks and pergolas: Deck boards (especially the joist ends and beam ends), pergola cross-beams, and wooden railing posts are frequently targeted. Untreated pressure-treated or cedar deck lumber is highly attractive to carpenter bees.
Wood siding: Cedar shingle siding and horizontal wood siding, particularly on older Long Island and Westchester homes, can develop multiple bore holes over several seasons.
Fences: Wooden privacy fences, especially unpainted cedar or pine, are among the most common carpenter bee targets in suburban backyards.
Window and door trim: Exterior door and window frames — particularly in older brownstones, rowhouses, and wood-frame homes in the five boroughs — are attacked where paint is peeling or the wood is exposed.

The Cumulative Damage Problem

A single carpenter bee season creates minor cosmetic damage. The problem is that carpenter bees return to the same sites. Offspring from the previous year's nests often bore new galleries adjacent to old ones, and a single board can develop 10, 20, or more galleries over several years. This creates structural weakening in load-bearing wood elements — fascia boards, eaves, deck beams — and opens pathways for moisture intrusion, wood rot, and secondary wood-boring beetle infestations. Woodpeckers, attracted to carpenter bee larvae inside wood galleries, can cause additional damage as they excavate to reach the larvae. What starts as a handful of round holes in spring can become significant structural damage over 3 to 5 seasons of neglect.

How to Get Rid of Carpenter Bees: Professional Treatment

Professional carpenter bee treatment targets the current season's activity and protects wood from future nesting:

Gallery injection: Each active bore hole is treated with a residual dust insecticide injected into the gallery. The dust contacts the female inside and is transferred to larvae. The gallery entrance is NOT sealed immediately — the bee must be allowed to carry the dust through the full gallery before sealing, or the larvae inside will survive. Galleries are sealed with steel wool and wood filler after a waiting period.
Surface treatment: Exposed wood surfaces in at-risk areas are treated with a residual liquid insecticide that deters new boring activity. This is particularly important for decks, eaves, and fascia boards with fresh sawdust evidence.
Prevention recommendations: Painting or sealing all bare exterior wood is the most effective long-term prevention — carpenter bees strongly prefer unfinished wood. Polyurethane, paint, or stain on exposed wood significantly reduces future nesting activity.

When to Treat Carpenter Bees

The optimal treatment window is early spring (April–May in the NYC metro area), when females are actively boring new galleries and before eggs are laid and sealed. Late-spring treatment after galleries are sealed is less effective because larvae inside sealed cells may survive if the residual dust cannot reach them fully. Summer treatment is still valuable for stopping the current season and preventing fall re-entry into galleries by newly emerged adults. Control Exterminating provides carpenter bee treatment throughout the spring and summer season.

Why Carpenter Bees Are Active Right Now

Late April and May are peak carpenter bee season in New York, New Jersey, and the NY metro area. After overwintering in old galleries as adults, carpenter bees emerge when temperatures reach the mid-60s°F — typically in April — and begin boring new galleries or expanding existing ones. This is the time when homeowners notice sawdust below eaves, see large bees hovering persistently near the same spots, and discover fresh round holes in wood that wasn't damaged last fall. Treating early in the season provides the best results and prevents a full season of egg-laying and gallery expansion.

Carpenter Bee Treatment Service Area

Control Exterminating treats carpenter bees throughout the NY metro area, including Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Staten Island, Nassau County, Suffolk County, Westchester County, and Rockland County. Call us at (212) 696-4164 or book online for a carpenter bee inspection.