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Orchard Mason Bees & Homes

The Orchard Mason Bee is the common name of a nonsocial native bee (Osmia lignaria ssp.) that pollinates our spring fruit trees, flowers and vegetables. This gentle, blue-black metallic bee does not live in hives. In nature it nests within hollow stems, woodpecker drillings and insect holes found in trees or wood. Sometimes there may be dense collections of individual nest holes, but these bees neither connect or share nests, nor help provision or protect each others' young. Also, they are active for only a short period of the year. They are not aggressive and one may observe them at very close range without fear of being stung, which makes them excellent for enhancing our yards and gardens. They add beauty, activity and pollination to our plantings. However, they do not produce honey.

About Orchard Mason Bees

The female Orchard Mason Bee visits flowers to collect pollen for its young. She forms a small ball of pollen and nectar in the back of the nesting tube and lays an egg on the ball. She then collects mud to form a cell partition and repeats the pollen ball-egg laying process until she reaches the mouth of the tube where she caps the end with mud. Starting the life cycle in the spring, adult males emerge from tubes first, but must wait for the later appearance of the females in order to mate. This event often coincides with the redbud (Cercis) or Pieris bloom. Females alone, begin founding new nests in holes to make a row of 5-10 cells in each nest. Females collect the pollen and nectar and lay eggs. Their short foraging range is about 100 yards from the nest. Activity continues 4-6 weeks and then adults die. During the summer, larvae develop inside the nests, make cocoons, and become new adults resting in the cells. With the onset of fall, the adults become dormant as they go into hibernation. These bees require some cold temperatures before spring in order to break their dormancy.

This Bee Is Gentle

The orchard mason bee is non-aggressive and will sting only if handled roughly or if it should get trapped under clothing. It is less objectionable than the honey bee as a pollinator in urban areas and should be encouraged. Efforts are being made experimentally to develop large populations of these bees to use as a supplement to honey bees for fruit pollination, much as the alfalfa leafcutting bee was developed for alfalfa seed pollination.

   
Wildlife World Bug Box
$39.95
Provide a valuable habitat for ladybirds, and mason bees with this carefully designed bug box.Ladybird food for bug box, lasts up to 12 months.
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Wildlife World Large Roosting Pockets
$17.95
Same as Roosting Pockets only 33-50% larger. 2" Opening. Price is for one roosting pocket.
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Wildlife World Roofed Nesting Pockets
$24.95
These are slightly larger than the regular roosting pockets. They have a peaked wooden roof to shed rain. The 2" hole is large enough for small birds to shelter in and use as a nesting box. Price is for one roosting pocket.
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Wildlife World Roosting Pockets
$14.95
Roosting pockets are cute birdhouses made out of natural materials (coco fibers, seagrass or fern) which small birds, such as wrens, finches and chickadees use for nesting or just roosting.  Each house or nesting pocket is 7" tall and 4" in diameter.  The hole is about 1.5" in diameter.  These pockets are long lasting.  Due to the nature of their design, we cannot guarantee any specific shape. Price is for one roosting pocket.


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Wildlife World Spiral Fruit & Suet Feeder
$14.95
The spiral feeder is designed to hold suet, fruit and other bird snacks.  Also may be used as a nesting material holder.  The spiral feeder will attract chickadees, nuthatches, titmouse and other birds that like to cling acrobatically to feed.  The spiral feeder is made of high quality spring wire.


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Support

The Registry of Nature Habitats - Buy Conservation Credits


For purchasing Conservation Credit(s)
You will receive
a copy of the John Audubon Multimedia CD
A replica of the complete (1840-1844)
James Audubon's Birds of America

You will also receieve a bluebird house for each Conservation Credit purchased and a 20% off coupon to be used on the A Bird's Home website!




Conservation Certificates

The Registry of Nature Habitats - Mission Statement

The Registry of Nature Habitats is dedicated to the preservation of land that, over time, has been a site and home for complex ecosystems. The Registry advocates preservation of these lands and its inhabitants, environmental education for community individuals and groups, and nurturing of these lands through restoration in order to conserve its natural resources for future generations.

Preserve

The Registry of Nature Habitats manages critical habitat, consisting of wetland, lowland, upland, forest and stream habitat, providing a home to wildlife species and plant species. As part of the mission to preserve these lands and its inhabitants, the Registry will continue to contract with owners of ecologically sensitive land as it becomes available.

Educate

The Registry of Nature Habitats is a "teaching ground," able to provide hands-on, interpretive learning experiences in areas such as ecology, botany, wildlife science, and geology, as well as the arts and humanities. The educational mission of The Registry of Nature Habitats is to teach an understanding and appreciaton of the environment, the invaluable lesson of land stewardship of our natural resources, and to expand the general knowledge of this habitat through scientific research. This will be accomplished through a year-round experiential, interactive approach, along with onsite and outreach activities including providing educational material both on this website, on media and through educational seminars. An on-site facility is in the design phase, which will house classrooms and an administrative space.

Nurture

Through several restoration projects, including the rebuilding of stream corridors, reintroducing native flora, and permitting only low-impact activities, the Registry is nurturing much land back to its natural state, undoing the damage of hundreds of years. The Registry of Nature Habitats restoration plan, developed with public and private partnerships and with local community support, will increase the land's value, enhance wildlife habitat, improve water quality, and preserve the integrity of the land's bio-diversity.

Renewable Energy

Promote the use of renewable and efficient energy technologies through education, training, workforce development, research, and project facilitation. The Registry supports clean energy development and energy conservation as the means to protect the environment, enhance public health, and save our nature habitats.

Conservation

We seek to educate people and provide innovative solutions that will help build a clean, more efficient world, by reducing energy consumption in a prudent way that does not threaten the natural balance that supports all life.



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Woodside Gardens

(607) 746-3089
PO Box 351
Delhi, NY 13753
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