Bees - Advice for Identifying and controlling
What do they look like?
Honey Bees
Honeybees are approximately 15mm in length and light brown in colour. They are social insects who live in a nest which may contain several thousand workers.
Mortar / Mining Bees
Both these species of bees vary in size and colour and are generally hairy. They look similar to Honeybees.
Bumblebees
Bumblebees differ from other bees in that they lead social lives, with many adults living and working in a single nest. Bumblebees seen in the garden in early spring have been hibernating during the winter. They are all young Queens who will spend the next few weeks eating pollen and nectar before seeking nesting sites.How do you spot them?
Mortar / mining bees nest close together giving the impression of communal life, however, each female lives alone. Mortar bees excavate a chamber approximately 20mm deep in soft mortar joints in brick walls, whereas mining bees excavate chambers in the soft sandy soil of lawns and gardens. The chamber is stocked with pollen and nectar and eggs are laid. The chamber is then sealed.Most bumblebees make their nests on or under the ground taking over old nests of mice and voles. South facing hedge banks are favourite sites.
Honey bees often cause concern in late spring or summer when the new Queen produced by the Bee Colony leaves the original colony accompanied by several thousand workers. This behaviour referred to as 'swarming' is concerned with establishing a new nest site, so the new Queen can rear her brood. When she settles on a tree or other support, she is surrounded by a protective ball of bees. This swarm usually only last around a day or so, and as long as it is left alone, it will move on peacefully.
How do they affect humans?
Bees are regarded as beneficial insects. Their collection of pollen from flowering plants is of great value by assisting in the evolution and distribution of flowers by transferring pollen from one to another. Many bumblebee and mining/solitary bee species are rare or endangered and actually have Biodiversity Action Plans to try to maintain and restore populations.
Honey bees have a barbed sting and will sting if provoked.
The Life Cycle
Honey bees - the eggs are laid only by the Queen. She lays one in each cell of the nest. The eggs hatch into tiny larvae which grow rapidly. Five days after hatching the cell is covered by the adult worker bees that were nursing it. In the sealed cell it changes into a pupae and by approximately 21 days later it will have changed into an adult bee. It will chew through the cap of the cell and emerge.
Solitary bees - eggs hatch to produce a larvae, which feeds on the pollen and nectar before pupating. The pupae hatch to produce a bee. This process may take a whole year to complete and the parent will have died before the offspring emerge. Adult mining and mortar bees only live for a short time each year normally from April-July. These bees often get confused with wasps in the early spring. However they are not aggressive and do not sting.
Bumblebees - Queen constructs a chamber of fine grass and other material. She secretes a wax from glands on her abdomen to make a small cup like cell in the centre of the nest. The Queen partly fills the cell with pollen and lays a number of eggs in it before roofing it over with more wax. At the same time the Queen makes a wax honey pot in which to store honey for when she is unable to forage due to bad weather. As soon as the eggs hatch the Queen opens the cell to provide the grub with more pollen and honey. The grubs pupate in a silken cocoon and approximately one month after the eggs are laid adults emerge. These new bees are all females, smaller than the Queen and their reproductive systems are not fully developed. They are the workers. The Queen remains in the nest after this and busies herself by making more egg cells and laying more eggs. Several batches of workers are produced in this way during the summer and the bee colony may grow to more than 300 workers.
After a time the Queen's ability to lay eggs falls off and fewer larvae are produced. The ratio of workers to larvae increases so that they get more food. The extra food causes these larvae to develop into new Queens instead of workers. At the same time the Queen lays some unfertilised eggs which although they develop in the normal way give rise to male bees. Males and females leave the nest to mate and the males will die shortly afterwards. The fertilised Queen will then find somewhere to hibernate over winter. The old Queen and workers will all die by the end of the summer leaving the hibernating Queen to continue the species for another year.
How do you control them?
Bumblebees are not aggressive providing they are well left alone. It is unwise to destroy bees without first considering an alternative method of control.
Wild bee colonies are under threat from a virus (Varoa) which is passed on by mites living in bee colonies. It is, therefore, not wise to destroy bee swarms unless they are considered dangerous. There are alternative methods of control such as seeking the help of a beekeeper to remove the swarm.
Masonry bees are normally harmless. On occasions they can present problems due to their ability to build nests by tunnelling through soft brick mortar, generally in older properties. It is rare for large numbers to occur together but vulnerable buildings tend to be repeatedly attacked and quite severe damage can occur over several seasons. Modern houses are not immune as small gaps left in otherwise sound mortar can be colonised. This does not cause a problem from a structural point of view.
Practical Advice
If a swarm is in close proximity to buildings, keep doors and windows closed. Ensure the swarm is left alone and do not try to remove it yourself. If the swarm is posing a danger contact Environmental Services or a local beekeeper.
Treatment
North Shropshire District Council does offer a service for the treatment of bees.
For people receiving the following benefits:
- Income Support
- Income Based Job Seekers Allowance
- Working Tax Credit
- Benefit
- Council Tax Benefit
- Pension Credit (Guarantee Element)
the charge is £20.00. If you do not receive any of the above benefits, the charge is £40.00.
| email: | envhealth@northshropshiredc.gov.uk |
|---|---|
| telephone: | 01939 238460 |
| fax: | 01939 238468 |
