Bees are vital to keep our eco-system healthy. They play an important role in pollinating our flowers, fruits and vegetables. Did you know... 1/3 of the food we eat depends on pollinators!
There are about 20,000 different species of bees in the world. 250 types in the UK.
Bees live in colonies that contain the queen bee (female), the worker bee (female) and the drone (male).
Although the worker bee and the queen bee are both females, only the queen bee can reproduce. Also, only the female bees are able to sting. This is because their "stinger", which is called an ovipositor, is part of the female bees reproductive design. The queen bee uses her ovipositor to sting and to lay eggs, whereas the worker bees are sterile females and can sting, but are not able to lay eggs.
Worker bees clean the hive, collect pollen and nectar to feed the colony and they take care of the offspring. All drone’s are male, and their only job is to mate with the queen. The queen’s only job is to lay eggs.
Delta Pest Control specialise in the safe removal and relocation of honey bees.
Honey bees are typically active between March - October. They can be identified by their black abdomen with amber bands. Their rear legs are bare and shiny.
Honeybees live in large "families" and can survive many years because they huddle together and eat honey to keep themselves alive during the winter months.
Honeybee nests vary in size. They will usually build their nests in tree crevices, but will occasionally build nests in roofs, lofts/attics or chimneys - and this is when they can become a problem.
Honeybees living in roofs, lofts/attics or chimneys can grow their colonies very large over the years. Problems we have encountered, include leaking of honey through ceilings which causes damage and staining to the property. They honey that the bees create, can also attract a number of other pests.
Unlike the bumble bee, a nest of honey bees is a more permanent situation – only part of the colony swarm off to make a new nest elsewhere, and leave the other part of the colony behind in the original nest.
Honey bees have large colonies – perhaps 10 to 20,000 individual bees (Yes, really!), and reaching much more at its peak in a bee hive. Because honeybee colonies can be extremely large and removal can be very messy, only a pest management professional or experienced beekeeper can safely remove a honeybee nest.
Delta Pest Control safely remove honey bees, and clean up the area.
We are in contact with local bee keepers, who we work with to provide a new home for the bees to thrive, once they have been removed from the undesirable location. We also re-home some colonies ourselves.
If you think you have honey bees in your property, please feel free to take a picture (if it is safe and practical to do so) and you can email your photos to us for advice. Alternatively we are happy to come out to survey the property and confirm the species of bee.
Thank you
Delta Team
