I'm old and I've seen a lot but this one takes the cake. In previous yrs we've
had ants taking over the feeder and we worked to solve that by greasing the hanging cords and that seemed to help. We've placed an inverted aluminum pie plate over the feeder to keep the squirrels out. Last few yrs, the wasps have been a problem. The wasp's aren't always out so it wasn't a bad problem.
But now, you should see the honey bees, 30 or more at each feeder station.
I've never seen this before and I'm in my 60's. We won't hurt the bees,
their numbers are dwindling and they are endangered. The hummers are
gone, we haven't seen them in a week or two. Does anyone else have this
problem? And if so, what do you make of it? Just looking for some insight here.
Jackie
My hummers are gone
Jackie - Hopefully they are not the African Killer Bees that we are seeing here in Florida.
It could be the weather conditions making nectar plants harder for the bees to find at this time. It could be progress and development destroying your native AR land. It could be ill bees. It could be any number of possibilities and some we don't even know about. Take your pick! Though ...... I have heard that if the port hole has a yellow opening then the bees are attracted to it. If it is red, they won't be as likely to nectar from your feeders. So paint them with red nail polish if they are yellow. That might confuse and discourage the bees. Try moving them to a different location after painting ports red.
Good luck! Maybe someone else here has had a similar experience and will be able to give you some advice that worked for them. :-)
I had a big problem with wasps and I read somewhere that if you move it they will go to the place where it was and just figure it is gone and then you can move it back in a week or so. I tried this and it worked for a while but I still have to move them around once in a while the wasps always seem to find it sooner or later lol The red nail polish helps too! I just keep moving them back and forth when they find it again, I only move them a few feet away.
Thank you Becky and Lebug. Becky we will paint the port red. I'm
sure it is yellow. I hope these aren't the killer bees. They buzz
me every time I walk by the feeder.
Lebug, the wasps are gone. Guess the bees ran them off too.
Off to buy red polish. Thanx for the tips.
Jackie
i saw one just today getting the nectar from a lily, and i've never seen any around here before. I'm a little north of you south of kc missouri.
I had honey bees this past fall in my brugmansia blooms working away flying off with the pouches full of pollen. I have never before had bees in the brugs. I do still have hummingbirds. I was sitting in my greenhouse last weekend and had a surprise visit by a female redthroat hummingbird.
It was my hope when I had the bees last fall that they are making a come back.
Jackie, is it possible for you to move the hb feeder just a few feet left or right from where it is now? I've read that once bees go to the feeder, if moved slightly, they figure that food source is gone.
Delisa - Hi! Glad to have ya join us! I was wondering why you said that you hoped the bees were making a "comeback"? Did something wipe them out in Wildwood? I have been through your town and it was very native Florida years ago. Like most of Florida that has changed somewhat. :-(
No there is a worldwide bee decline.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/10/1005_041005_honeybees.html
Becky you wouldnt believe what it looks like here now. The Villages moved in.
Another DG member here lives in The Villages (TropicalKaren).
Ya know ..... now that you mentioned that about the bee decline, I remember talking to a fella locally who does bee farming for honey. He mentioned that. I think he said something about the constant use of pesticides being the reason. How sad. No surprise here though. I see it in my neighbor's yards. Perfect lawns, ya know. No flower beds. Just green lawns, shrubs, and trees. No color except green, green, green, and more green! LOL! My yard kinda stands out in my neighborhood because I have a variety of colors! We should move to the U.K. over there where Mark is. Those Europeans take gardening VERY seriously! And in Germany I heard you could be fined for tossing chewed gum or anything else on the ground. My kinda country!!!! :-)
Cordeledawg, They had emptied the main feeder by this am.
DH will paint it in the am, refill and move a few feet away.
While the hummers were just aggravated by the wasps, they
wanted no part of these bees. Maybe they are killer bees.
Delissa, will check out your link later. I heard that a parasite
was killing the bees. Kinda scary as honey bees pollinate
30% or more of the world food crops.
Jackie
Yes its called the Varroa mite. I dont know a lot about it, just read a piece from a bee keeper a couple years ago and it really stuck with me. Mainly yes because of the impact on world food crops.
Jackie, another suggestion is to place a dish (best to use a yellow dish) of stronger sugar solution (2:4) somewhere away from the hummer food, to attract the bees to their own energy juice. Then maybe they'd leave the hummer's bottle alone.
Good idea, Deborah!!!! I forgot about doing that. I did that last year for the wasps and it worked rather well! :-)
Deborah, that sounds like a great idea, will try that too.
Thanx, Jackie