Bees and Salt?

[Bee-Key-Pur]

Last summer after a trip to the beach, my daughter made up a table centre piece in a shallow dish, for the patio table, using pieces of drift wood, sea weed, sea shells and beach sand.

During the night it rained and filled the dish with water, but the surprising thing was that it was covered with honey bees.
I dipped my finger into the water to taste it and it was quite salty!!!

In all the bee keeping books I have read, not one ever mentioned this fact about bees.

However, after a search on the internet, I found an article written by a beekeeper and he said that every spring he put out bowls of salty water for his bees.

What do the bees do with this salt and how are they using it?

Brian.

 

[RoofTops]

There are also reports of bees preferring dirty water to clean. General view is this because thye want the minerals from it.

My bees could fly to the sea if they wanted - it is about 200 yards away and is very sheltered, but they seem to like the garden pond instead although I wouldn't know if a few are nipping down to there, but the majority of water gathers are around the pond.

I suspect the bees would take the salty water for a while and then switch to something else when they had collected enough,

 

[Bee-Key-Pur]

We do have lots of open water feeders and I normaly see them drinking from them. But they remained on this salty water dish until it was all gone...
That's why I wondered if they needed it in some way.

Brian

 

[Finman]

I have read much bee nutrition researches. Nowhere is said that put salt in patty or in syryp or drinking water..

I have tried that salt drink water but bees were not fond of that more than ordinary water.

 

[gavin]

In spring manipulations with bare hands I've had bees licking my skin. Often wondered if they were seeking salts.

 

[oliver90owner]

What do the bees do with this salt and how are they using it

They have a nervous system, just like us (well similar) All to do with electrolytes and electric potentials.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Butterflies and bees congregate round the salt licks for livestock I see in the fields around here. I was in the Jungle in Costa Rica once on holiday and when I got back to camp after a walk I took my shirt off to hang up and in no time there were butterflies all over it.
As RAB says, electrolytes

 

[victor meldrew]

I think Hooper suggests that the addition of a little salt or sugar in water provided will attract bees away from less desired places ! Dog bowls, neighbours pools etc.

John Wilkinson

 

[Haughton Honey]

There are also reports of bees preferring dirty water to clean. General view is this because thye want the minerals from it.

My bees could fly to the sea if they wanted - it is about 200 yards away and is very sheltered, but they seem to like the garden pond instead although I wouldn't know if a few are nipping down to there, but the majority of water gathers are around the pond.

I suspect the bees would take the salty water for a while and then switch to something else when they had collected enough,

Ahhhhh yes, Kingsbridge.

Many a time I've pootled up the estuary from Salcombe for a shopping trip to Kingsbridge. Nice town and some lovely little creeks around and about (especially South Pool). Probably one of my favourite parts of the country and the Devon Angling Centre's just up the road if you're hooked on your sea fishing.

Used to stay at The Vineyard during the 70's and 80's with my parents. They had their honeymoon there in 1968 too and the only photos that came out were of my father catching a basking shark!

 

[victor meldrew]

father catching a basking shark!

Why
John W

 

[Finman]

Yes we see that bees like salt. When i have a morning piss on my summer cottage lawn, i may see 5 bees licking my speciality. But I know that at same time thousands of bees carry water to my 20 hives, yoo see that it has no meaning.

I may see bees sucking water 100 m away even if I have water pools in the yard.

Sphagnum moss is a good water stuff to bees.

 

[freethorpe bees]

Used to stay at The Vineyard 80's with my . They had their honeymoon there in 1968 too and the only photos that came out were of my father catching a basking shark![/QUOTE]

More like how? Must have been a strong line - they're enormous!

 

[Bee-Key-Pur]

Yes we see that bees like salt. When i have a morning piss on my summer cottage lawn, i may see 5 bees licking my speciality. But I know that at same time thousands of bees carry water to my 20 hives, yoo see that it has no meaning.

I may see bees sucking water 100 m away even if I have water pools in the yard.

Sphagnum moss is a good water stuff to bees.

This has given me an idea Finman. A little test.

Set up a table, one dish of fresh water, one dish of pond water, one dish of salty water, one dish of beekeeper pee and one dish of iron bru, but only because you can never have enough, ( unless you know different), then sit back and record which one the bees like best.

The only problem with the beekeeper pee, that might have to come from someone else, unless bees like alcohol...

Oh, maybe I should add beer into the trial as well?

What do you think?

Brian

 

[Finman]

.
Eh. An example how simple thing become task impossible.

This I do. There is a knowledge or rumour that you pee very hight near beehives in woods. Bears notice it and they consider the hight of the area master. I hope for their own luck that bees do not clean the tree trunks.

I have hives on bears areas.

 

[biglongdarren]

while up at my hives on monday i noticed that my bees where landing on the muddy damp ground and going mad on whatever was there,there wasnt even puddles of dirty water,it was just damp wet mud,and there was maybe 50 on and around it,was only a few yards from there hives as well.

 

[Finman]

.
Last spring I noticed the condition how bee get water in cold days.

Days were cold long time under 10C. I use to feed pollen patty. Thousands of bees come out to get water and flying continues 5 hours. But it happens only when sun is shining.

I have made drinking plases to bees which I have protected with glass plates. One wall is partly open. then I have a big water bottle 5 litre which has a hole under water surface. It adds water water level goes down. The heat adds speed when bees lick water near zero temp. They really use much that water.

They go too onto natural soil where sun is shining.

Part of lanscape is covered with snow and they really need warm places to suck.

In summer after a bad day thousands of bees gather mist droplets from plant leaves early in the morning. No salt helps them.

 

[Haughton Honey]

Why
John W

Apparently, up until the sixties they were caught quite regularly on the south coast!

 

[RoofTops]

.
...you pee very high...

With my prostrate? I would need a ladder and let gravity do the work.

 

[Bee-Key-Pur]

With my prostrate? I would need a ladder and let gravity do the work.

 

[the druggist]

Too many R's Rooftops !!!

Tony