Multispecies Storytelling

Newcomers in our Gardens: The Violette Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa violacea)

At the beginning of the new millennium an originally mediterranean wildbee appeared in the South of Germany: the Violet Carpenter Bee.

 

In Franconia the bee was initially attacked as a dangerous stranger (interpreted as Ufos).

 

Twenty years later, the bee has been accepted as important Co-gardener.

In 2022, the Violet Carpenter Bee was elected as animal of the garden (Heinz-Sielmann-Stiftung), in 2024 it was elected as wildbee of the year.

More and more gardeners are accepting the needs of the Violet Carpenter Bee: Dead apple trees are allowed to remain in the garden, salvia enforces the mediterranean communities of plants.

 

Reinforced by climate change the Violet Carpenter Bee also migrates to Northern Europe. Like many other species, the Violet Carpenter Bee is here to stay.

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Idea: Prof. Dr. Michaela Fenske

• Mit der Blauen Holzbiene Denken. Neue Perspektiven auf die Verflechtungen von Menschen und Insekten. In: Bayerisches Jahrbuch 2023.
• Becoming Aware of Insects: Dangers and Endangerments in the Anthropocene. In: Hollsten, Laura et al. (ed.): Human-Bug Encounters in Multispecies Networks. Boston/Leiden 2025.

Design: Dr. Sandra Eckardt