The pair, Katja Hogendoorn from the University of Adelaide, and Remko Leijs from the South Australian Museum have been tracking the status of the green carpenter bee population on Kangaroo Island since the 2007 bushfires and were pleased to share the positive results of recent research using X-Ray technology.

Following the devastating bushfires on Kangaroo Island in 2020, which burnt nests containing mature brood, along with crucial banksia habitat, hope for the survival of the green carpenter bee diminished.

Researchers had hoped that bee numbers would replenish as they had in response to the 2007 fires. However, in this instance, by 2022, two years after the fires, there were no signs of new nests or live bees.

Despite this, the research team focusing on the green carpenter bee population maintained its observation of Kangaroo Island. In October 2023, after the most intense survey to date, two occupied nests were discovered in remnant unburnt vegetation. While this provided evidence that bees remain present in a small patch on the island, their numbers remained small.

To monitor the presence of the bees, researchers ran a campaign urging the public to be on the lookout for any remaining green carpenter bees, and to notify them of any additional nests.

In early August, Katja and Remko revisited the nests found in October, alongside veterinarians Bill Marmion and Cuddie Cudmore, from Adelaide, and their portable X-ray machine. Several images taken allowed researchers to investigate the trunks without disturbing the nests or the environment, revealing some exciting findings.

It was found that nests had been well used in the past, with one containing a female green carpenter bee and a spider, and the other containing 27 bees, both males and females. These bees group together to hibernate in older nests. As females produce an average of four to five offspring, Remko said it is highly probable that these 27 specimens are offspring from five to six nests.

“These findings suggest that there are more nests in nearby surrounding,” Remko said.

In preparation for the spring breeding season, Remko and Katja have placed six artificial nesting substrates made of Balsa wood, mimicking banksia trunks in the vicinity of the nests.

The slow breeding process of the green carpenter bees means that their survival on KI remains precarious, but this recent discovery has reignited hope among researchers and sparks an optimistic outlook on the future of the green carpenter bee.