What it shows
Many helpful insects, such as solitary bees, need small holes to nest or shelter. A hotel made from waste gives them a safe place and lets you observe from a distance who moves in.
The science
Most bees in the world are solitary, not honey bees. Females lay eggs in small hollow stems or holes, provision them with pollen and seal the end, and the young grow inside. Ladybirds, lacewings and beetles find shelter in dry leaves and bark and eat pests such as aphids, so they help gardens. Tubes of different diameters suit different species, and the hotel must stay dry and face a warm, sheltered direction. Insects are not harmed and are left alone.
Materials
Cost: free. Many items come from home or from waste; spare parts such as LEDs, motors and wire are in the store.
- A wooden fruit crate, a cut 2 litre bottle or a cardboard box, as a frame
- Pieces of dry bamboo or paper straw rolled tight, cut to about 15 cm
- Bricks with holes, pine cones, dry leaves and straw
- A few pieces of bark or coconut husk
- String, wire or strong tape
- A small roof piece of plastic or tin to keep rain out
- Notebook
Safety
For this project: An adult must cut the bamboo and wood and smooth the rough ends. Do not poke the holes or open them to look inside, and keep the hotel away from doors and play areas in case of wasps or bees. Do not use it if anyone in the home is allergic to stings.
Never use mains electricity: power models with cells, batteries or a low-voltage adapter. Sharp and hot tools, flames and lab chemicals need an adult or your teacher beside you. Keep magnets, button cells and small parts away from young children, and wash your hands after making.
All the safety rulesStep by step
8 steps. Do them in order, and test each part before you go on to the next. Write what you notice in a notebook as you go.
Choose your frame and fix a small roof on top so the rain runs off the front.
Cut hollow bamboo pieces with nodes at the back so one end is closed, in lengths of 15 cm, with the open mouths smooth.
Pack the bamboo tubes tightly in the lower part of the frame with their open ends facing forward.
Fill other sections with pine cones, dry leaves, straw and bark, and put holed bricks in one section.
Tie everything firmly so nothing falls out, and cover the front of the loose items with chicken mesh or net if the birds pull them out.
Hang or place the hotel at about 1 metre off the ground, facing the morning sun, away from doors.
Check from a distance every week, and note any sealed holes, mud caps or visiting insects, without touching.
Draw the hotel and write which materials were used most as a home.
What you should see
Over some weeks the bamboo tubes get capped with mud or leaf pieces by nesting insects, and small beetles and ladybirds may shelter in the dry leaves. Your notes show who used which part.
Viva questions
A teacher or a judge will ask how it works. Try to answer each question before you open it, then compare.
1Why do some bees nest in hollow stems?
Solitary bees lay eggs in small holes and seal them to protect the young.
2Why must the tubes be closed at the back?
It gives the insect a sealed chamber for eggs and food.
3Why keep the hotel dry and face the sun?
Damp causes mould and the young develop better with warmth.
4How do ladybirds help gardeners?
They eat aphids and other plant pests.
Take it further
Compare the number of occupied tubes of 4 mm, 6 mm and 8 mm width at the end of a season.
Change one thing, measure what happens, and add a table or chart of your readings: that is what turns a model into your own investigation.
Free ebooks for this project
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