# What is this feral bee and wasp behavior?!



## SoCalNewbee (7 mo ago)

I'm new to beekeeping and Beesource, but I've seen a massive gathering of what look to be European honeybees and yellow jacket wasps at a spring twice this month while on a hike. Both types of insects have been clustered on the ground with several flying around, but mostly they're just hanging out on the ground. I know wasps are predatory, but they don't seem to be feeding on the bees or at least not so much that they've diminished this bee population. The first time I saw it, I thought the bees had just been attacked, but now it seems like they are hanging out and having a drink (?) The photos aren't great (I wasn't too keen to get that close to this gathering of wasps), but you can see how many there are and how close the two species are. Has anyone ever seen something like this before? Also, is that a queen bee on the rock in the first photo?


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## Some Bloke (Oct 16, 2021)

Yes, they're drinking. They need water not just to keep their metabolism going, but in hot locations thy cool their hive with it.

Wasps only predate bees at certain times of year. Though I think this is one of them. That's a little odd.

If the bee on the rock were a queen, she'd be longer... Though she does seem to have very short wings... So it's not entirely clear. But a more likely explanation is, she is an empty water forager who has not yet tanked up, whilst the worker next to her is full - see how fat she is? They carry water (and nectar) in their stomachs and visibly swell when full.


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## SoCalNewbee (7 mo ago)

Thanks for your response! It was such odd behavior. Our bees drink from our fountain, but just hover, get water, then are on their way. These bees and wasps were hanging out on the banks of the water source for quite a long time before leaving and the wasps didn't seem to be attacking the bees. So mysterious!


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## ShelleyStuart (Jan 4, 2010)

They may be getting trace minerals from this water source that they can't get from your fountain.


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## SoCalNewbee (7 mo ago)

Thanks! This makes so much sense! This bee and wasp congregation is around a tiny spring on a very hot and dry hike I go on several times a week about four miles from where I live. They seem to spend a lot of time just hanging out at this spring and not really flying, so maybe they're getting nutrients rather than just drinking the water. It was such a surprising thing to see.


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## RayMarler (Jun 18, 2008)

I've heard of bee-lining where folks will take out sweet syrup to attract bees, and then follow the "Bee-Line" of them flying back home to find where wild beehives are located. Well, my great-grandfather was a beekeeper, and he used to do bee-lining by watching bees where they gathered water at their favorite watering hole and following their "Bee-Line" of flight back to the hive. He knew the locations of all the hives in the area from his bee-lining adventures. So, I'd say the bees and wasps that you see are getting water, and if you follow their line of flight they will lead you to their nests wherever they are.


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## AR1 (Feb 5, 2017)

My sister-in-law has a potted plant outside, and the bees cluster on the dirt like that when it's moist. I suppose the water and some mineral taste they like. I had a tarp on the ground last year that got full of leaves and junk and pooled rainwater, and the bees LOVED that, while ignoring the clean water I put out for them. Minerals or flavor or something they like/need. So now their water bowl is full of leaves and dirt and sticks. Looks pretty foul, but the bees like it.


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## RayMarler (Jun 18, 2008)

My cat loves fresh clean aerated water. 
Bees like it dirty but fresh, not stagnant. They like mulch in their water. I think they might prefer sucking water out of dirt of some kind to trying to drink it directly. Mineral needs or maybe just easier to suck thru a material like a sponge or soggy dirt or mulch. Who knows the answers, mine is just conjecture on observations.


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## SoCalNewbee (7 mo ago)

What an incredible story! I had no idea you could trace bees back to their hives that way and that there was such a thing as "bee-lining."


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## SoCalNewbee (7 mo ago)

AR1 said:


> My sister-in-law has a potted plant outside, and the bees cluster on the dirt like that when it's moist. I suppose the water and some mineral taste they like. I had a tarp on the ground last year that got full of leaves and junk and pooled rainwater, and the bees LOVED that, while ignoring the clean water I put out for them. Minerals or flavor or something they like/need. So now their water bowl is full of leaves and dirt and sticks. Looks pretty foul, but the bees like it.


Our bees also like water that's been sitting a while. Maybe it has a smell that attracts them, too. I've found they also drown fairly easily in a bowl or pool of water, so it's great that you put leaves, dirt and sticks in your water bowl to give them nutrients and make sure they don't drown. Thanks for sharing this tip!


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## SoCalNewbee (7 mo ago)

RayMarler said:


> My cat loves fresh clean aerated water.
> Bees like it dirty but fresh, not stagnant. They like mulch in their water. I think they might prefer sucking water out of dirt of some kind to trying to drink it directly. Mineral needs or maybe just easier to suck thru a material like a sponge or soggy dirt or mulch. Who knows the answers, mine is just conjecture on observations.


Thanks for this advice! It's so interesting that bees like mulch and soggier, rather than clear water. I'd prefer mine clear, fresh and clean


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## GregB (Dec 26, 2017)

SoCalNewbee said:


> Thanks for this advice! It's so interesting that bees like mulch and soggier, rather than clear water. I'd prefer mine clear, fresh and clean


Especially bees like the manure run off.
Not joking.


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## adamtiffany36 (7 mo ago)

They're drinking. every living thing need water to live
snaptube vidmate​


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