Kitchen Garden Forum

I've been somewhat disturbed recently to note a number of dead or dying bumble bees in our garden. Either they are already corpses or seem to be crawling around in a state of stupour on the ground. Has anybody else noticed this? I believe there is a virus of some kind which is killing bees but don't know whether this could be what is affecting them or whether it is somebody locally who is spraying who could be the culprit.

Hi Primrose,

That's both worrying and upsetting. I'm afraid I'm far from being an expert on bees, but it could well be worth dropping an email to the bumble bee conservation trust, who really are experts. They're very friendly and even if you're not a member, etc., I'm sure they will be happy to answer. Their address is:
Bumblebee Conservation Trust
School of Biological & Environmental Sciences
University of Stirling
Stirling
FK9 4LA

This is the FAQ answer from their website re. dead bees.

Bumblebee nests grow throughout the season, and produce new males and queens in autumn. Throughout the life of the nest a large number of smaller worker bees help the nest to grow by collecting nectar an pollen - these are the bees that you see out and about in summer. These workers only live 2 weeks or so, and then sadly die. It's therefore quite normal to see a small number of dead bees in the garden. So long as you are still seeing live bees in the area, then it's unlikely to be something new that we should be worrying about.

Bumblebees, like many insects in fact (and humans!) sometimes suffer from a number of different parasites which live inside them. These parasites can make the bees appear slow and sluggish, perhaps drunk even! Again, sad as this may seem, it is a natural process that has been going on for many many years, and is not at the root of the problem. Equally, bumblebees may sometimes seem very lethargic just because the weather is cold - but they will recover when it warms up.

Having said all of the above, if anyone begins to notice large numbers of dead bees across a large area, coupled with very few live bumblebees in the area then it's just possible that a disease outbreak has occurred in your area. If you are seriously worried that this may be happening then please collect a sample of the dead bees, package them securely, and post them to the above address.

Hope this helps,
Vivien

Thank you vivien for your detailed reply. I'm still seeing lots of live bees around - we have a wonderful display of foxgloves this year which they seem to love, so perhaps it's just part of the natural cycle. However, if I notice an increase in dead bees, I may follow your advice.

A little ray of hope perhaps.
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents ... foot_baths

Thank you very much for the interesting Link, Jack.