to ask you to save a bee

[wonderingsoul]

As you know bees are very important, but the numbers have decreased by alot over th epast couple of years.

i saw a post on the dreaded facebook, asking if you found a bee not flying. or laying around. mix up some white suger with water, pour on some tisue and put it next to the bee, or if the bees to sick place the bee on it.

it acts as a quick engry intake and hopfull the bee will fly off.


i found a huggeeee bee in my living room today, and i have to admit i am scared of them to. but it was trying to get back out the window but couldnt fly high enough. so i did the mixture, it crawled onto it and drank it. i have to admit it was pretty amazing seeing this so close up.
it had it fill and flew right out the window to the flowers below.

i just wanted to share, as i ts pretty cool and to ask if that if you can, help them. we need em.

[FruOla]

I've just realised what sort of mental picture I've created, by that comment - Apiarist

The reason I said it was because, quite recently, there have been signs up on some lamp posts in my area about a lost colony of bees - there was even a photo of the bees and the apiarist's phone number!

[HouseAtreides]

The poor apiarist, wandering round in a white outfit with giant hat, forlornly calling "Beeees! Where are yoooou?"

[TylerHopkins]

Great tip, thanks for sharing.

I try and save anything that gets into the house, even flies. They always head for the light so a swift closing of blinds and they fly back out towards the door. Works every time! Or, close most of the blinds except one, keep the window open and they leave.

It will be spider season soon. Not looking forward to it but I'll still save the hairy little fuckers!!

[FruOla]

The bees and the apiarist have obviously been reunited, as all the signs have now gone. How does it work, I wonder?

Does the apiarist take the hive to where the bees are and sort of swoosh them back into the hive? Or does the hive get left where the bees are, waiting for them to go back inside? Or do they have some sort of radar system which takes them back to their hive in its original position?

[SoupDragon]

What is the point of a picture of the bees?

Realistically, any large buzzing mass is likely to be theirs.

[FruOla]

I have no idea Soup, too!

[HouseAtreides]

I think he/she smokes the swarm then literally picks it up and puts it in a box! If he/she has the queen the rest of the colony will follow.
That's just reminded me... Last year I was out in my front garden when I saw a swarm of bees go past my house about 15 feet in the air. It looked like one of those cartoon ones that chase Donald Duck.

[FruOla]

Ah, maybe because people are so used to seeing photos of lost dogs or cats the apiarist thought that a photo of bees would catch people's eyes and make them read the sign?

[MeerkatMerkin]

A bee flew into my glass of prosecco the other day! I couldn't let him drown so I had to tip it out on the grass and he flew away all squirly like, tipsy from his little tipple.

Not sure prosecco is good for bees but it was his choice!

[FruOla]

I've just remembered, when I was a kid I had a friend whose dad kept bees. We lived in Middlesex and I was invited to join them for a day out, taking the bees to somewhere in East Anglia - I can't remember where now, but somewhere there was heather.

[fishandlilacs]

I just did it, theres been a mad bee in the conservatory all afternoon and despite my best efforts i have been unable to shoo it out of a window or door.

Finally the poor thing was just sat still exhausted on the wall, I managed to pick it up in an old yogurt pot and put a tiny drip of sugar water in the bottom, it had a big old drink, groomed itself, flexed it wings and took off. It landed on the nearest elder tree so hopefully more nectar was to be had there.

[FruOla]

Yaay!

[LippyDiDooDah]

I've always done this as it just made perfect sense to me. My DD now just runs to get the sugar when she sees one. Not done it so far this Summer plus DD got stung on the foot by a bee while running on our lawn last weekend so she may now be too frightened to get up close.

So glad this is the recommended way to treat ailing bees

[skyblue11]

That's amazing and in ashamed to say didn't know this trick, I shall definitely do this next time I see a bee in need, I love bees and its so sad they are disappearing fast without them we'd be lost. I was glass it's highlighted this in a programme this week we all need to help them.

[Jux]

Can I use icing sugar? It's the only white sugar I've got; otherwise we only have brown/golden in the house.

(We've not had many bees here yet though I've seen a few over the last couple of weeks, certainly not many though. And my honeysuckle is a riot atm!)

[Jux]

Also would garlic solution damage bees? I use it to keep blackfly and things off my tomatoes and strawberries.

[diddl]

This has just reminded me that I haven't seen/heard any yet

[pinkpanther79]

Sugar water works for tired butterflies too. Lovely to watch them fly off.

[FruOla]

I've got loads of those Gu ramekins dotted around the front and back gardens with water in them. As it's been so hot, I've been refreshing the water every day. I've also put one with sugar water in it - just in case. But we've got loads of lavender, which the bees are loving at the moment.

I took a few photos yesterday, maybe I'll get around to uploading them onto the 'Have You Seen This' topic.

[FruOla]

I've started a thread in 'Have You Seen This' with pictures of our 'happy bees' www.mumsnet.com/Talk/have_you_seen_pictures/1815487-Save-the-BEES-or-other-little-critters-Summer-2013

[FruOla]

There was a fascinating documentary on BBC2 last night (Fri 2nd Aug) called What's Killing Our Bees? A Horizon Special, which was presented by Bill Turnbull who has been a beekeeper for a number of years. If you didn't see it, try and catch it on iPlayer.

[Cheeseatmidnight]

I have a little bowl of sugar water in the garden under the lavender which is the hang out if choice for our bees

[daisychain01]

2013 will go down in history as a bumper year for bees! There has been a worlwide alert about the scarcety of bees and how serious it would bee (ha ha) if they were to diminish too much. We would eventually starve due to lack of pollination. But fear not, this year it has been much better.

We have had loads of beez buzzzzzing around our lavender. In fact we kept our commitment to creating a bee friendly garden and planted lavender, delphiniums, gladioli, hollihocks and other delights and they hav been pigging out all summer.

Must bee off, byeeee x

[candycoatedwaterdrops]

We get a lot of sleepy bees in the house, they often get confused by our roller net blinds. I open the blinds but they still can't work out how to get out of the window. I shall try this!

[Jux]

I am getting bees (?) on my Nemesia. They are collecting pollen on their back legs, but they look like wasps. Same shape and size at any rate. Hairy thorax but the body isn't - as far as I can see, anyway! Are they bees, or wasps? Anyone know?