honey bees

shelmarie · 16-07-2012, 09:35 PM

Hi everyone

I have honey bees nesting in my cavity wall and would like to get them out but obviously am not willing to kill them to do this.

Is there a humane way i can do this or should i just leave them and block the hole when they move on/die?

thanks shell

alley cat · 16-07-2012, 10:20 PM

We have had honey bees neasting in our chimney for several years now, they dont hurt so I just leave them, I dont think they will move on, when the colony gets too big I think it just splits and some swarm to somewhere else.
I think the only way to be rid is by killing, unless maybe a bee keeper can remove the queen then maybe the others would follow??
Someone else is sure to know! I will bee interested in the reply too.

pagan queen · 16-07-2012, 10:26 PM

You can phone the council and they will remove them but if they are inside your wall they will have to take the wall apart to do it, and they are probably not near the hole, more likely to be near the roof. You will probably have to wait until they are all gone not sure how long that will be, they could stay for some time, they hibernate in the winter and just carry on the next season.

Are you sure they are honey bees? How many have you seen? If it's just one bee at a time it may be a masonry bee, they are solitary so wouldn't be a problem.

shelmarie · 17-07-2012, 08:10 PM

Are you sure they are honey bees? How many have you seen? If it's just one bee at a time it may be a masonry bee, they are solitary so wouldn't be a problem.[/quote]

Yes they're defiently honey bees as the council have been out and had a look. They gave us the number of a local bee keeper but when he came to look he said there's nothing he can do. It's not a solitary bee its an entire swarm.

They're on the side of my house near my drive so i have to run a gauntlet just to get out of the car everyday.

The only other suggestion was to pour in ant powder and fill the hole, but i'd feel awful doing this.

Levi · 17-07-2012, 08:39 PM

Our Domestic Honey Bees don't tend to be that aggressive/defensive. They hate loud noises/vibrations lawn mowers for example, but if you are a few metres away they should totally ignore you. If they are swarming they are generally completely harmless, they have better things to be getting on with and nothing to defend.
If you can't live with them then you're going to have to block the hole up sooner or later. On the plus side they aren't actually "wild", Honey Bees are domesticated and they swarm all to often much to the annoyance of their owners.

natty · 17-07-2012, 08:49 PM

i dont know how its done but there are beekeepers who do remove live hives so maybe you could try contacting a different beekeeper to get a second opinion.
bees are fascinating i had an incident with a bees nest a few years ago.

my old greyhound was very ill and had no balance, he kept falling over and ending up with his feet in the air he couldnt walk at all so i tried to get him down the garden to put him in the dog run on the lawn so he was less likely to hurt himself , it took ages to get him down there and i badly needed to pee so i laid him down and went to run into the house. the only thing in the run was a small wooden guinie pig hutch and typically he decided to try and stand and fell on his head with his behind on top of the hutch . he was a very heavy dog and very gangly so it was a major effort to move him so i decided to try and slide the hutch out from underneath him i moved it and laid him flat on the grass and all of a sudden both him and me were covered in bees from head to toe in our ears and eyes every where . it was incredibly scarey but amazingly despite me just having completly destroyed there nest neither me or my old dog got a single sting . i was very surprised but also very greatfull.

so running the gauntlet might be less dangerous than you think .

shelmarie · 17-07-2012, 08:57 PM

so running the gauntlet might be less dangerous than you think .[/quote]

i'm not as bothere about myself but slightly concerned for my cat, and they are very close to my toilet window which now means i cant open it without them coming into the house

i may just wait until the weather really cools down and then block the hole up and hope none the poor litlle mites are stuck inside.

TillyTortoise · 16-07-2012, 10:34 PM

You will have to knock the house down and re-build it. I can't see any other way.

alley cat · 16-07-2012, 11:02 PM

These are mine on THE hot day we had earlier this year!
I think some may have swarmed and gone else where as the colony is big.

Easter Bunny · 16-07-2012, 11:04 PM

WOW! Lots there. Do you have an open chimney? x

16-07-2012, 09:35 PM	#1
shelmarie Member Hatchling Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: pontefract, west yorkshire Posts: 506	honey bees Hi everyone I have honey bees nesting in my cavity wall and would like to get them out but obviously am not willing to kill them to do this. Is there a humane way i can do this or should i just leave them and block the hole when they move on/die? thanks shell __________________

16-07-2012, 10:26 PM	#3
pagan queen Senior Member Adult Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Kent Posts: 6,073	You can phone the council and they will remove them but if they are inside your wall they will have to take the wall apart to do it, and they are probably not near the hole, more likely to be near the roof. You will probably have to wait until they are all gone not sure how long that will be, they could stay for some time, they hibernate in the winter and just carry on the next season. Are you sure they are honey bees? How many have you seen? If it's just one bee at a time it may be a masonry bee, they are solitary so wouldn't be a problem. __________________ 1.0.1 TG Ibera 1.0.0 Chinese Frise dog 0.1.0 African Grey Parrot 0.1.0 Hahns Macaw 0.1.0 Pearly Conure 0.2.0 Guinea Pigs 0.2.0 Chickens 1.0.0 Bearded Dragon 7.4.0 Budgies 1.1.0 Cockatiels 1.3 Kids 1 Husband

17-07-2012, 08:10 PM	#4
shelmarie Member Hatchling Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: pontefract, west yorkshire Posts: 506	Are you sure they are honey bees? How many have you seen? If it's just one bee at a time it may be a masonry bee, they are solitary so wouldn't be a problem.[/quote] Yes they're defiently honey bees as the council have been out and had a look. They gave us the number of a local bee keeper but when he came to look he said there's nothing he can do. It's not a solitary bee its an entire swarm. They're on the side of my house near my drive so i have to run a gauntlet just to get out of the car everyday. The only other suggestion was to pour in ant powder and fill the hole, but i'd feel awful doing this. __________________

17-07-2012, 08:57 PM	#7
shelmarie Member Hatchling Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: pontefract, west yorkshire Posts: 506	so running the gauntlet might be less dangerous than you think .[/quote] i'm not as bothere about myself but slightly concerned for my cat, and they are very close to my toilet window which now means i cant open it without them coming into the house i may just wait until the weather really cools down and then block the hole up and hope none the poor litlle mites are stuck inside. __________________

16-07-2012, 10:34 PM	#8
TillyTortoise Senior Member Adult Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales Posts: 2,327	You will have to knock the house down and re-build it. I can't see any other way. __________________ Ross

16-07-2012, 10:20 PM	#2
alley cat Senior Member Adult Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Somerset Posts: 3,150	We have had honey bees neasting in our chimney for several years now, they dont hurt so I just leave them, I dont think they will move on, when the colony gets too big I think it just splits and some swarm to somewhere else. I think the only way to be rid is by killing, unless maybe a bee keeper can remove the queen then maybe the others would follow?? Someone else is sure to know! I will bee interested in the reply too.

17-07-2012, 08:39 PM	#5
Levi Member Hatched Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: A few degrees south of Freezing to Death. Posts: 437	Our Domestic Honey Bees don't tend to be that aggressive/defensive. They hate loud noises/vibrations lawn mowers for example, but if you are a few metres away they should totally ignore you. If they are swarming they are generally completely harmless, they have better things to be getting on with and nothing to defend. If you can't live with them then you're going to have to block the hole up sooner or later. On the plus side they aren't actually "wild", Honey Bees are domesticated and they swarm all to often much to the annoyance of their owners.

17-07-2012, 08:49 PM	#6
natty Member Egg Join Date: Aug 2011 Posts: 81	i dont know how its done but there are beekeepers who do remove live hives so maybe you could try contacting a different beekeeper to get a second opinion. bees are fascinating i had an incident with a bees nest a few years ago. my old greyhound was very ill and had no balance, he kept falling over and ending up with his feet in the air he couldnt walk at all so i tried to get him down the garden to put him in the dog run on the lawn so he was less likely to hurt himself , it took ages to get him down there and i badly needed to pee so i laid him down and went to run into the house. the only thing in the run was a small wooden guinie pig hutch and typically he decided to try and stand and fell on his head with his behind on top of the hutch . he was a very heavy dog and very gangly so it was a major effort to move him so i decided to try and slide the hutch out from underneath him i moved it and laid him flat on the grass and all of a sudden both him and me were covered in bees from head to toe in our ears and eyes every where . it was incredibly scarey but amazingly despite me just having completly destroyed there nest neither me or my old dog got a single sting . i was very surprised but also very greatfull. so running the gauntlet might be less dangerous than you think .

16-07-2012, 11:02 PM	#9
alley cat Senior Member Adult Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Somerset Posts: 3,150	These are mine on THE hot day we had earlier this year! I think some may have swarmed and gone else where as the colony is big.

16-07-2012, 11:04 PM	#10
Easter Bunny Senior Member Adult Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Kent Posts: 5,337	WOW! Lots there. Do you have an open chimney? x __________________ Lynne x

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