Bees seemingly attacked whilst returning and leaving the hive

[highgate]

Dear all,

I have a somewhat strange question but I walked over to check on the bees today and found a squadron of flying insect like creatures smaller than my bees waiting to pounce and pouncing on my bees.

1. What are they? (looked to be stripped yellow and black) and reminded me of oversized nats.

2. What are they doing?

3. How can I get rid of them?


Thanks all,



H,

 

[george]

Any chance of a photo , it would narrow it down a bit .

 

[enrico]

wasps are small at this time of the year but bigger than oversized nats!!!

 

[highgate]

Any chance of a photo , it would narrow it down a bit .

Hi George, I have taken a few, but none of them came out of sufficient size or quality to show.

 

[highgate]

wasps are small at this time of the year but bigger than oversized nats!!!

Well, they appear smaller than my bees (circa an inch or so) (buckfasts) and they do have a more vibrant shade of yellow and similar stripes.

They did look a little like wasps but thought they were smaller and less barrel shaped. But if you're saying that they're smaller this time of year, then they may well have been juvenile wasps.

Guess I better start researching wasp traps and getting a few.

Also, is it worth putting back the entrance reducer and reducing it to the smaller size for them to better guard against hive robbing or is it not worth it as wasps should have plenty of supplies around now?

 

[Murox]

Hover flies ??

 

[highgate]

Hover flies ??

Thats it!

Just googled them, and they look like what I saw. Do those do anything to bees?

 

[Murox]

I doubt they are harmful to bees, you would need to read up on that though to be sure. They are pollinators too and also like nectar.

 

[enrico]

Hover flies won't touch your bees but in fairness you did say they were 'pouncing' on them which threw me a bit!
E

 

[Millet]

Google Beewolf..

 

[Murox]

Google Beewolf..

? I thought they were a solitary beastie.? OP talked of a "squadron" ? But yes they certainly fit OP general description otherwise.

 

[Swarm]

? I thought they were a solitary beastie.? OP talked of a "squadron" ? But yes they certainly fit OP general description otherwise.

More likely than hover flies.

 

[The Poot in Somerset]

Bee wolfs are larger than honey bees and not like gnats at all.
Needs a photo methinks. Maybe catch one in a net?
Bee wolfs are extending their territory though, from East Anglia and the South, but only where there's sandy light soils.

 

[highgate]

Hi all,

Tried uploading the photos but as the picture of the creature off of my phone was quite small it ended up being a blur when I blew it up.

Researching and looking carefully at it I think that Murox was right. The reason that I thought that they were hovering in squadron formation attacking is that they were clustered near the hive and randomly kept moving what looked like to me towards incoming and outgoing bees.

On research and reflection I think that their motion was random (a few trees near by) and they were just moving around rather than attacking the bees.

I did learn that Fruit flies and insects though and are quite good pollinators.

Thanks everyone and sorry for the scare.