Bee's

I'm finding lots of bees on the lawn,paths and patio, they look like there drunk and lifeless, stood on one ( bad boy i am) so i have to look were i'm walking from now, picked up 8 this morning and put onto flowering plants and then they come to life

any body else finding bee's like this

 

I've only seen about 3 bees this year! I've sown lots of Wildflowers around my garden this year to help encourage them!

 

I haven't seen any in that state - only a couple of bumble bees going about their usual business. I wonder are they ill?

 

Have they been spraying near you Jiffy?

 

I noticed this too, a few of these bumble bees lying on the floor almost on their side, attempting to walk around.. but I think this is down to Parasitic wasps, that lay their eggs inside insects (including bees), and the first stage is a loss of bearing and mind, and then they die.. so I would say parasitic wasps are probably to blame.

Oh it helps if i read the topic properly, I thought you meant they were struggling generally (I have seen a few bees that weren't looking good), but if so then it'll be that it hasn't got the warmth to operate in the morning, but quickly recovers and the heat builds in the afternoon.

 

No, it's to early to spray yet they have only just planted there wheat 2 or 3 weeks ago, no oil seed rape so no nasty chemical on the seed

Looks like it's what stephen says

house and garden is south/ south east so sun most of the day

 

ah sure they're just like the rest of us so...i for one cant function in the mornings either

 

Hi Jiffy...have you seen anymore lifeless bees?

I spoke to my dad at the weekend and he said that he was looking out onto his garden early one morning and noticed black coloured "lumps" on the lawn. He went outside to have a look and he said there were quite a few bumble bees dead on the grass. He thought they were dead anyway as they seemed lifeless. He said he noticed them because the magpies seemed interested in them. My OH mentioned that he read about a virus that has been affecting bumble bees so maybe it's that. It's pretty sad though - I wouldn't like to see lots of dead/lifeless bees on the lawn.

 

I've had a few like that and did the same as you, picked them up and put them onto plants in the sun. I'm wondering if they were caught out in the cold and started drifting off to sleep and that perhaps the shock of being handled together with being put in the sun enabled them to warm up and wake up.

I've also had no movement from my Mason Bee boxes this year as yet. They were only about 20% populated last year because of the weather. Surely there must be some new ones around?

 

Yes just found 7 bumbles and 3 honey bees this afternoon 13-25 it's warm and sunny now, put them on a skimmia and they started to feed

which is now yes they are spraying near bye

 

I agree with Scorpio , caught out by the cold as we have had sunny mornings so they have come out to fly then just get very cold , put in the sunshine will soon come to life , I know with my flowering currant Ribes it can make them a bit drunk and dopey , lime trees are meant to have the same effect when in full flower.

Spruce

 

I wonder how many bees are actually starving to death. Spring got off to a late start this year, and a saw the first few bumble bees of the year a couple of weeks or so again, when there were very few flowers open. Even the usual spring flowers have been late putting in an appearance round here.

 

about a week ago I found a struggling honey/solitary bee. I put it on a flower & left it. Later on I found a similar bee dead on the path :(

this morning my daughter found a bumble on the ground, so I put that on a flower in the sun also. We live in the country & they have been spraying near us, on fields only just planted! Hubby (who is a country bumpkin) says they're spraying off weeds before the wheat/barley even comes up!

 

Wondered why I hadn't seen any honey bees this year yet, usually this time of year the Skimmias covered in them from the hives on the allotments at the bottom of the garden, asked another allotment holder today if the beekeeper still had them as hadn't seen him lately apparently he lost all his bees last winter

 

I've only seen one honey bee so far this year and that's not going to pollinated the masses of blossom on my apple trees all by itself.