[Mel]

Hi all,

I need some help please,we have just had some new people move into the farm next door,this borders with our paddock,they have started keeping honey bee's and have four what look like home made hives-quite large really,the trouble is,they have over 100 acres and decide to put their hives right next to our paddock and this is also very close to the bottom of other peoples gardens.

Not that we have anything against bee's,but these are incredibly aggressive,I was stung last week,my partner today in the face,one tried to sting me on the forehead,another was stuck in my hair,one has stung a chicken and a duck has been stung as well. these bee's are horrendous,we can't go outside.it seems almost as if they are watching for us to venture out again and then they strike!

I killed one,only as it was in my hair and obviously I had no self control whilst hitting myself in the head with a tea towel and it dropped on the floor-actually chased me from the middle of my acre paddock to inside the house! we have identified that we think it is called a buckfast bee? though are uncertain as our knowledge of them is extremely limited.

I would like to go out into the paddock and feed my animals but I keep getting attacked!

Any ideas Please,(begs with mercy!)

[jaykay]

I'd go and talk, they probably don't know the bees are causing a problem. Go gently, so you don't provoke an aggressive response from the owners! Don't call their bees aggressive. Emphasise the welfare of animals not people  (do they keep animals themselves — if so, focus on the same types they keep). Say you know it's a nuisance but is there anywhere else the beehives could go, cos you're really worried about x (hens, ducks) being killed as the bees are stinging and following them.

You may well get a constructive response. If not, go and talk to the police - this time emphasising the harm done to the humans, the fear and trepidation you feel trying to go about enjoying your property. Apparently it becomes an assault, they're being reckless as to whether injury would be caused (same as tying an aggressive dog to your joint gatepost) - says my retired bobby husband.

[doganjo]

I'm not sure about that, Jaykay.  I went to an afternoon bee keeping course (decided not to keep bees after heatring about all teh hassle and work), and was told that bees are classed as a wild insect once they leave the hive.  And was also told that in any case it would be extrmely difficult to prove who owned the bees which were attacking.  Having said that, I would approach the neighbour and explain what was happening, perhaps take a bottle of wine round and introduce yourselves if you haven't already?

[jaykay]

DH was pretty definite and he does know his law. He did also say that Leghorn would need a police officer who knew what was what, not like the lazy b****** round here! (I have, on occasion, had to tell them which section of which law they have a power of action under, when they were trying to tell me they could do nothing  )

I can see the issue of proving who's bees were attacking, in a populated environment, but in this instance it shouldn't be hard but talking first is always the best bet 

[Mel]

Hi,

Thanks for the information.when we took over the acre it was in fallow for some 5 years,we just did not get any honeybee's,bumble bee's or much else for that matter except hoards of butterflies,it was only 2 years ago when I saw our first honey bee and was able to stroke it on it's back whilst upon a flower.it is only since the new people moved in and I noticed one day,hundreds of bee's drinking from around a large puddle I made for the ducks,thing is they were not aggressive then as I was in amongst them all,it is only over the last week they have turned insane.

It is definitely the honey bee's from next door,the hives are only some 20ft from our boundary,the one's killed had hoards of pollen on them and you can see them coming from the hives and through and over the tree's.The tree's on our boundary are probably 20ft in height,however,because the paddock has been landscaped around the pond actually in a bid to bring "nice" honey bee's in due to them being under threat.I did not realise it would be us under threat this year!

These bee's seem to attack the head and face and hubby's side of his face was swollen up last night.I have never seen chickens in total distress in running from them trying to get them off themselves.The ducks take to the pond and go potty.I just hope they are not stung enough to kill any of them.

This morning,all seemed quiet but honestly,I was not hanging around,fed the pigs,chickens and ducks before evading the area at high speed 

[doganjo]

OK where are our beekeepers?  I wonder if since it's just a week this has been happenning if something has happened with the hives?  Perhaps they have been disturbed, raided, robbed - wasps can do that.  I really think you should speak to your neighbour and emphasise it's only been in the last week and that you wondered if his hives had been disturbed in thsi manner.  He may not know yet and will want to know if soemthing is upsetting his bees!

[pikilily]

Hiya, not much of a beekeeper really - i used to for a while until i became highly allergic to their stings. someone else will have far more knowledge than me, but this is what i can remember...

this is the time of year when bees can get a bit 'angry', the thundery weather doesnt help. They frequently swarm at this time of year too....however swarming bees are usually quite docile and dopey because they have 'filled' up on feed before they swarm. Even so i wouldnt be diving in there LOL!!!
Mmmmm, what else..... bees dont like the smell of horses and will 'chase' after a horse, so maybe other animal pongs wind them up, too!! They dont like thumping and banging...  they dont like being hungry.... or disturbed (as doganjo said)....maybe their hives have been moved or bumped etc.

  all of the above ideas are valid, I would also express concern about the welfare of the bees to their owner...ie have the hives been knocked by an animal etc. Do take care yourselves because you can develop allergiesto bites and stings, and it sounds like your husband has had a nasty sting!!

HTH Emma T

[pikilily]

Oh there is some interesting info in the topic 'Bees and Horses' - read down to the posts about beekeepers obligations and the laws!!
Emma T

[Llandovery Lass]

If the queen has left with a small swarm and the others are left queenless, could be because the new one got killed on her mating flight, then it is common for the hive to become aggressive until a new queen is installed, perhaps your neighbours haven't spotted this yet, they may be pleased to know and sort it out. Ours swarmed a few weeks ago and there are still no new eggs in the big hive but they have not become aggressive so we believe the new queen to be in residence, not that OH has seen her yet.

[pikilily]

Oh, I forgot that one about the queen!!!
LOL doesnt matter what species of animal it is if the queen has gone it all goes to pot!!!
Emma T

[OhLaLa]

Ok. this is what you do:

You go to see the 'owners' of the bees. You explain very nicely that you appreciate having the bees around but that they are situated too close to yours - and others - people's properties and that you are worried about them. Say you understand the '5 miles, 5 foot' situation, but would they please resite the apiary in one of the other fields they own, which are much further away from you and your neighbours land. If the beekeeper is worth his/her salt, they will understand.

All is not lost - if things are as bad as you say, and this particular 'batch' of babies are aggressive, the queen is mated by many drones, so the next batch of eggs to hatch could be more docile.

Bees should not be sited next to footpaths, rights of way, roads, houses etc.

[Greenerlife]

My own bees have been quite aggressive towards me this year on ocassion!  I think it is something to do with water or lack thereof.  Times when I have been attacked have been whilst I was at the field tap running water for my pigs!  they seem to come straight at me with intent!  A couple of times now I have had to run away flapping at my head (they always seem to get into my hair) and had to come bak in a bee suit to feed and water my pigs!  This only happens at 4pm - never had any problems at other times - it's weird.  If you have disturbed them whilst they are looking for water that might back up my theory?

[OldGaffer]

I agree with OhLaLa, the apairy is obviously poorly sited and too close to you and your neighbours and needs to be moved, however there is a problem. In order to move the hives say to another field on the farm, the new site needs to be ideally three miles away. The rule of thumb being you can move the hive three feet or three miles. If they move the hives, say half a mile then a lot of the foraging bees will return to the original location. So the bees will probably require a temporary home. After six weeks the hive can be moved from the distant temporary apairy back to the new site.

It does sound like at least one hive has a new queen that has crossed with another strain during mating and the new progeny are aggressive. I have recently had this problem and moved the hive to a field out of the way and re-queened the hive. It can still take six to eight weeks for the bees to calm down, as they are replaced with the new bees from the new queen.

Besides asking the beekeeper to move their apairy, they need to ensure the bees have a water source nearby on their own land.

[Shnoowie]

The apiary definitely needs to be re-sited.  Which way are the hives facing?  If the entrances are facing towards your land that would explain why you keep getting bombarded - their landing/take off zone will be your property!
Buckfast is a 'strain' of honey bee; they hail from Buckfast Abbey, Devon and were bred by Brother Adam.  Buckfast Bees like large hives and are known for being prolific in both the honey and brood sense.  They also tend to have a very good temperament - though this does vary depending on the queen and drones she has mated with.
We have three Dadant hives with Buckfast bees in and they have not given us any gyp yet - we don't use a smoker and have (when feeling brave) handled them without gloves.
It may transpire that if the hives are turned to face the opposite direction, you have less bees in your garden.  Also, if the nearest water source is your duck pond the bees will drink from there as water is use in the process of making honey; you will get less bees around your pond if there is a more convenient water source nearer the hives (preferably on your neighbours land), if the water source on your neighbours land is also 'tainted' with a bit of sugar, the bees will prefer it and leave yours mostly alone.

[Moleskins]

I once had some queens from a chap who said they were Buckfast crossed with Greek Queen - they were lovely,
until the old Queen died and the new one took over and then they were nuts and I mean nuts, extremely aggressive.
Tell your neighbour to re queen them. After max. six weeks they should be better. Sometimes they can change temperament
in as little as 24 hours.
Your neighbours problem will be finding the old Queen to remove her, if they are anything like mine were. They were so aggressive
that you couldn't see out of your veil and all you could smell was venom as they stung it. I had no choice but to destroy the hive.
And before anyone says I should have done this or that, I'm an experienced beekeeper and I felt that the drones from this hive
should not be allowed to breed.
I now use Irish Queens and very rarely get stung or have any problems.