Source webinar: Carpenter Bees, Great Southeast Pollinator Course Week One (June 16, 2026)
Presenters: Whitney Ottinger; Dr. Bethany Harris
Audience: Home gardeners, school and community gardens, growers, county agents, and Great Southeast Pollinator Census volunteers
Credit: No applicator CEU. Educators who attended the live session earn 1 PLU.
All questions and answers are drawn exclusively from the webinar. Timestamp references point to the segment where each answer is stated, so learners can rewatch. Difficulty mix: 5 Recall, 5 Application, 3 Analysis (13 questions).
Question 1
Timestamp Reference: 6:03 – 6:26
Difficulty: Recall
The eastern carpenter bee’s genus name, Xylocopa, translates to what?
a) Wood-borer
b) Woodcutter
c) Tunnel-maker
d) Sawdust bee
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: Ottinger said Xylocopa translates to “woodcutter,” a name earned because the bees chew round holes in wood with their mandibles.
Source in transcript: Ottinger, Xylocopa virginica identification (~6:03).
Question 2
Timestamp Reference: 38:02 – 38:48
Difficulty: Recall
According to the DeLuca et al. research Dr. Harris cited, what is the average buzzing frequency of carpenter bees during buzz pollination?
a) About 60 Hz
b) About 90 Hz
c) About 130 Hz
d) About 200 Hz
Correct Answer: c
Explanation: Harris reported the DeLuca et al. finding that carpenter bees buzz at an average of about 130 Hz and generate forces up to 80 times their body weight.
Source in transcript: Harris, buzz-pollination research (~38:02–38:48).
Question 3
Timestamp Reference: 31:26 – 31:50
Difficulty: Recall
When building a DIY nesting box for carpenter bees, what entrance-hole size does NC State recommend?
a) About one-quarter inch
b) About one-half inch
c) About one inch
d) About two inches
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: Harris noted carpenter bees need a large entrance hole and that NC State recommends about half an inch.
Source in transcript: Harris, building and placing DIY nesting boxes (~31:26).
Question 4
Timestamp Reference: 15:05 – 15:28
Difficulty: Recall
According to the presentation, native bees, including carpenter bees, pollinate up to what share of all US agricultural crops?
a) Up to 5%
b) Up to 15%
c) Up to 30%
d) Up to 50%
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: Ottinger stated that native bees pollinate up to 15% of all US agricultural crops.
Source in transcript: Ottinger, native bee importance (~15:05).
Question 5
Timestamp Reference: 50:54 – 51:57
Difficulty: Recall
In the UGA crepe myrtle cultivar study, which two cultivars stood out as the primary bee attractors across all bee groups?
a) ‘Natchez’ and ‘Tuscarora’
b) ‘Seminole’ and ‘Victor’
c) ‘Dynamite’ and ‘Sioux’
d) ‘Catawba’ and ‘Muskogee’
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: Harris reported that ‘Seminole’ (pink, medium height) and ‘Victor’ (red, dwarf) were the primary attractors across honey bees, bumblebees, carpenter bees, and small native bees.
Source in transcript: Harris, crepe myrtle study (~50:54–52:44).
Question 6
Timestamp Reference: 6:47 – 7:16
Difficulty: Application
You spot a large black-and-yellow bee in the garden and need to record it for the census. It has a smooth, shiny black abdomen. What should you record it as?
a) A bumblebee, because of the dark abdomen
b) A carpenter bee, because of the shiny abdomen (“shiny hiney”)
c) A honey bee, because of its size
d) Impossible to tell without capturing it
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: The presenters’ field test is the abdomen: a carpenter bee has a shiny black “shiny hiney,” while a bumblebee has a fuzzy “fuzzy fanny.”
Source in transcript: Ottinger (~6:47) and Harris’s recap (~1:09:12).
Question 7
Timestamp Reference: 1:08:08 – 1:08:29
Difficulty: Application
You are teaching a new volunteer how to count for the Great Southeast Pollinator Census. A carpenter bee lands on your chosen plant, flies off, and returns a minute later. How should it be counted?
a) Count it once; repeat visits don’t count
b) Count each landing event, so it is tallied again when it returns
c) Only count it if it stays longer than 10 seconds
d) Don’t count it, because you can’t be sure it’s the same bee
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: Harris explained that you count each landing event over the 15-minute window — if a bee leaves and returns, you count it again.
Source in transcript: Harris, joining the census (~1:08:08).
Question 8
Timestamp Reference: 17:15 – 18:12
Difficulty: Application
A homeowner wants to discourage carpenter bees from boring into their deck railing. Based on the presentation, what is the recommended first step?
a) Apply an insecticide to the railing immediately
b) Paint or seal the exposed wood
c) Remove the deck and rebuild it with hardwood
d) Set up a bee hotel right next to the railing
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: Ottinger put prevention before pesticides: painting or sealing exposed wood makes it far less attractive, and insecticide is a last resort for significant infestations threatening the structure.
Source in transcript: Ottinger, prevention (~17:15–18:12).
Question 9
Timestamp Reference: 33:30 – 33:53
Difficulty: Application
Where should a carpenter bee nesting box be placed for best results?
a) In full sun all day so it stays warm
b) In deep shade to keep it cool
c) Away from structures, getting morning sun and afternoon shade
d) Attached directly to the side of the house
Correct Answer: c
Explanation: Harris recommended placing boxes away from structures in a spot with morning sun and afternoon shade, because boxes in full sun all day can overheat.
Source in transcript: Harris, placing nesting boxes (~33:30).
Question 10
Timestamp Reference: 50:01 – 50:52
Difficulty: Application
A gardener wants to add plants that UGA trials found especially attractive to carpenter bees. Which selection best fits the presentation’s findings?
a) Rudbeckia, Coreopsis, Helenium, asters, and salvias
b) Roses, tulips, and daffodils
c) Boxwood, holly, and juniper
d) Bermudagrass and fescue
Correct Answer: a
Explanation: Harris reported carpenter bees were drawn to Asteraceae such as Rudbeckia, Coreopsis, and Helenium, plus asters, and to mint-family (Lamiaceae) plants like salvias.
Source in transcript: Harris, which plants attract carpenter bees (~50:01).
Question 11
Timestamp Reference: 1:00:14 – 1:02:50 / 1:16:35 – 1:17:14
Difficulty: Analysis
A carpenter bee visits your salvias but you notice slits at the base of the flowers. Why does this behavior mean the bee is likely NOT pollinating those flowers?
a) Because salvias do not produce pollen
b) Because the bee cuts a hole at the base and takes nectar without entering the flower or contacting its reproductive parts
c) Because carpenter bees never carry pollen
d) Because the flowers are already pollinated by the time the bee arrives
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: As “nectar robbers,” carpenter bees pierce tubular flowers they cannot enter and take nectar through the slit, bypassing the anthers and stigma — so no pollination occurs at that visit.
Source in transcript: Harris, nectar robbing (~1:00:14–1:02:50) and the Jimmy Gatt Q&A (~1:16:35).
Question 12
Timestamp Reference: 13:40 – 14:44
Difficulty: Analysis
Why is the eastern carpenter bee better suited than most other insects to pollinate purple passionflower (Passiflora incarnata)?
a) It is the only insect that can reach the flower’s nectar
b) The flower’s anthers and stigma are positioned on a stalk at exactly the right height to brush the bee’s back as it feeds
c) It chews the flower open to reach the pollen
d) It vibrates the flower at 130 Hz to release trapped pollen
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: Ottinger explained the flower’s reproductive parts sit on a stalk above the flower at the right height to contact the carpenter bee’s back, so the bee picks up and transfers pollen — a close match of flower anatomy and pollinator behavior. (Other insects reach the nectar but do little pollinating.)
Source in transcript: Ottinger, passionflower relationship (~13:40–14:44).
Question 13
Timestamp Reference: 3:11 – 3:55 / 17:39 – 18:12
Difficulty: Analysis
Ottinger framed carpenter bee management as a “systems” decision. Why does she treat insecticide as a last resort rather than a first response?
a) Insecticides are illegal for homeowners to use on carpenter bees
b) The goal is to balance environmental benefits against labor and cost, reserving treatment for cases where damage is significant and threatens the structure
c) Insecticides have no effect on carpenter bees
d) Carpenter bees cause severe structural damage within days, so prevention is pointless
Correct Answer: b
Explanation: Ottinger weighed environmental benefit against the labor and financial burden of fighting the bees; because structural damage usually develops only over many years, prevention comes first and insecticide is reserved for significant infestations threatening the structure.
Source in transcript: Ottinger, systems approach (~3:11) and prevention (~17:39).
Answer Key
1-b, 2-c, 3-b, 4-b, 5-b, 6-b, 7-b, 8-b, 9-c, 10-a, 11-b, 12-b, 13-b
Difficulty distribution: Recall — Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4, Q5 (5). Application — Q6, Q7, Q8, Q9, Q10 (5). Analysis — Q11, Q12, Q13 (3).
Processed for UGA Center for Urban Agriculture / Great Southeast Pollinator Course Archives
Source: Corrected SRT (Stage 1) — GTBOP_Transcript_2026-06-16_CarpenterBees.srt (286 blocks); Archive Package (Stage 2) for structure