countrytalkandtips.myfreeforum.org

admin · Site Admin Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 227

You hardly see any honey bees around my patch . Probably fewer honey than bumbles and there aren't many of those either . Local wisdom is that they all get blown away but conditions really aren't that bad around here .
Seems to me that there is plenty of blossom -- spring wildflowers , gorse , heather . There isn't much obvious colour in summer because the land is grass , forestry , hillside or bog ( no orchards or fields of rape etc ) but it isn't barren . Surely bees would find something ?
However , there are large numbers of a flying insect which is about the size of , and sounds like a bee . They hover in the same place for a while then dart after any passing bugs . I can't tell whether they want to eat or mate with them . This reminds me of a programme I saw about solitary predatory bees which I think were of concern in the USA . Does anyone know what these Irish things are , and could they explain the absence of honey bees here ?

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biobee · Joined: 10 Jan 2008 Posts: 9 Location: Devon, England

My guess is they are hoverflies, which are just a little smaller than a honeybee and behave just as you describe. They come in several flavours.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrphid_fly for pics and descriptions.

Honeybees require good forage and also places to nest; usually hollow trees, but they will make use of a wide range of containers.

Do you have any beekeepers nearby? If so, they will tell you how well they thrive in local conditions.

Bumblebees like to burrow into vertical banks and love a wide range of flowers, possibly a wider variety than honeybees.
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wayland · Joined: 14 Dec 2006 Posts: 1163 Location: Campile. Wexford

I would agree. Some of the more common Hoverflies do look very much like Honey bees. Well untill you get your eye in that is, then they look far from it. Very Happy

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