# Problem: Bees in the birdbath



## Rick 1456 (Jun 22, 2010)

I have had a similar situation. It's my bird bath so I do not have the same issues you do. So, mine is a BEE BATH  Just a suggestion to try. Once the bees find a source like that, it becomes THE source. See if your neighbor will let the BB go dry for a couple of days. The bees should find a new water source and use that as the primary source. Moving the BB might accomplish a similar change in behavior. At least your neighbor will see you are trying to work with him. JMO
Rick


----------



## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

The birdbath water is most likely warmer than the pond and the creek. And if water is too cold, bees won't use it. So you will need to provide an alternate source of water that warms similar to the birdbath. It would also be useful to give it a distinctive odor. Water with chlorine (swimming pool water), compost (rotting leaves, etc), manure all have distinctive odors and have been reported attractive to bees.


----------



## Ravenseye (Apr 2, 2006)

The bees love my birdbath. I've had cases in real hot weather where the bees were so thick that it seemed to spook the birds. I put another birdbath out and that helped. The birds got their fill in either case early in the morning when the bees weren't flying much yet.


----------



## KMP (Feb 21, 2013)

Then why not _two _"bird baths"? -- Oh, sorry, just saw that "Ravenseye" had written the same thing.

-K


----------



## MaydayMalone (Jan 19, 2012)

It took these girls all summer to find this bird bath, but once they did, it was a primary source.


----------



## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

What do birds need a bird bath for?


----------



## gonzoBee (May 10, 2012)

those are some really cool photos nice work MaydayMalone..


----------



## HTC (Mar 17, 2012)

My bees like the bird bath more then my gold fish pond. Well have never seen a bee at the fish pond. What I figure is the bees like to sit just above the water level in the bird bath and lick the water from the moisture that is wicked up the concrete.


----------



## MaydayMalone (Jan 19, 2012)

sqkcrk said:


> What do birds need a bird bath for?


To take a bath, of course. You've never seen a bird wash itself in a bird bath or more commonly, a puddle?


----------



## MaydayMalone (Jan 19, 2012)

Thanks, gonzo. I'm very familiar with the Nazareth area. Where do you have your bees?


----------



## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

To make your source more attractive than the bird bath you need to understand that bees are attracted to water because of several things:
•	Smell. They can recruit bees to a source that has odor. Chlorine has odor. So does sewage.
•	Warmth. Warm water can be taken on even moder-ately chilly days. Cold water cannot because when the bees get chilled they can’t fly home.
•	Reliability. Bees prefer a reliable source.
•	Accessibility. Bees need to be able to get to the water without falling in. A horse tank or bucket with no floats does not work well. A creek bank provides such access as they can land on the bank and walk up to the water. A barrel or bucket does not unless you provide ladders or floats or both. I use a bucket of water full of old sticks. The bees can land on the stick and climb down to the water.

If you can provide all of these at a level better than the bird bath, you stand a chance of succeeding. Set your source up and, if you can, empty the bird bath. Then after you have them trained to your new source (which should have odor as well as the rest) then you can refill the bird bath. You may have to continue to provide warmth and smell and access in the one you hope to keep the bees working or they may go back to the bird bath.


----------



## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

To accomplish this you need to understand that bees are attracted to water because of several things:
•	Smell. They can recruit bees to a source that has odor. Chlorine has odor. So does sewage.
•	Warmth. Warm water can be taken on even moderately chilly days. Cold water cannot because when the bees get chilled they can’t fly home.
•	Reliability. Bees prefer a reliable source.
•	Accessibility. Bees need to be able to get to the water without falling in. A horse tank or bucket with no floats does not work well. A creek bank provides such access as they can land on the bank and walk up to the water. A barrel or bucket does not unless you provide ladders or floats or both. I use a bucket of water full of old sticks. The bees can land on the stick and climb down to the water.

So, if you empty the bird bath, and set up a new water supply that meets all of this criteria and then wait until the bees are working it, you should be able to refill the bird bath. But you have to maintain all these advantages such as smell, warmth and access or the bees will go back to the bird bath. By the same token you can go to some length to make sure when you first fill it (especially) that you make the bird bath unattractive, i.e.. no smell, no easy access (no floats or rocks to land on) cold water etc. After they get the habit deeply enough ingrained you can get a little less vigilant on the differences, but there should always be advantages to the one you want them to use.


----------



## gonzoBee (May 10, 2012)

MaydayMalone said:


> Thanks, gonzo. I'm very familiar with the Nazareth area. Where do you have your bees?


hey Mayday right now just in my suburban small yard ,but just completed 6 hives hope to find some good spots in the lehigh Valley area,I'm a Bird lover also
but have never seen that many on my bird bath


----------



## franktrujillo (Jan 22, 2009)

you can try and put coffee grounds next to the pond water.so they stay wet they love the coffee grounds


----------



## Sandbergr (Aug 1, 2011)

I placed a clay saucer from a pot,it is sealed with black paint,filled it with rocks , placed it on the ground next to my wife's bird bath and ALL the ladies are now happy.


----------



## sfisher (Sep 22, 2009)

Michael Bush = *The Bee Whisperer*


----------



## DonShackelford (Jan 17, 2012)

Sandbergr said:


> I placed a clay saucer from a pot,it is sealed with black paint,filled it with rocks , placed it on the ground next to my wife's bird bath and ALL the ladies are now happy.


Are you saying the bees left the bird bath in favor of the clay saucer?


----------



## Sandbergr (Aug 1, 2011)

Yes the bees left the bird bath for the saucer. The saucer is 16" . I bought bagged dark colored rocks,which I smashed in a bag with a hammer,so it really seem to warm up fast. The bird bath still has a few bees but not like before. I placed the saucer "hive" side of bird bath. The birds and the bees (and the wife) are happy,which in turn makes me happy.


----------



## Rusty67 (Mar 9, 2010)

I've heard that a tablespoon of vinegar in the bird bath will repel bees and not birds. It's worth a try.


----------



## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

What about another bird bath, in your yard?


----------



## DonShackelford (Jan 17, 2012)

sqkcrk said:


> What about another bird bath, in your yard?


This isn't a neighbor, Mark, it's several miles from me. It's not a show stopper either, the property owners were just expressing their only down side to hosting hives last fall, and I thought I'd see if there was a simple fix. 

The fact that it is warmer than the pond and smells of chlorine (city water) is probably the draw. We tried emptying it for a week last summer, made no difference. The dark clay saucer with rocks sounds like it is worth a try. I'll give it a shot if it ever gets warm around here. Snow storm moving in this weekend!


----------



## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Oh, I though it was a next door neighbor. So they are bees, but not necassarily your bees. Good. No liability, just being friendly. I wonder if it is the concrete and not the chlorine in the city water. Does it happen all Summer long?


----------



## DonShackelford (Jan 17, 2012)

It is an apiary of mine, so they are my bees. It does happen all summer long. The bird bath also sits in the shade. The pond is about 3 acres in size and is mowed on one side so there is very easy access for the bees. 

My next door neighbor has also told me there are lots of bees in his birdbath but he sees that as a good thing!


----------



## Acebird (Mar 17, 2011)

Is the bird bath close enough to install an irrigation line so as to slightly overflow the bird bath? This will keep the bees off because there is no place to land, make the water cooler, and washes away the bird poop that the bees may be attracted to. Of course it also gets rid of the problem of constantly filling the bath and if placed in the center of a raised garden it supplies moisture to your flowering plants.


----------

