Birds and bees

[Swarm]

There was a discussion a while ago about swifts and swallows taking bees. I've been looking through the window and just outside, in full sunlight, we have a cherry blossom and a skimmea which are always full of bees at this time of year.
Over the past couple of years we've had a resurgence of house sparrows and we now have a troop of them constantly around. Very adept they are at catching bees, too. Out of the air or off the blossom makes no difference.

 

[Erichalfbee]

They better not touch mine.
I haven't any spare

 

[BeeJayBee]

I've seen robins, great tits and blue tits catching bees, but there are probably a fair few other birds that eat them too. Blackbirds mop up the dead ones from the ground in front of colonies too lazy to take their dead away from the hive.

I wish we had house sparrows, I'd sacrifice a few bees to encourage them into the garden.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I wish we had house sparrows, I'd sacrifice a few bees to encourage them into the garden.

Millions here

On the other hand we've been seeing a few Chaffinches and Siskins with Trichomonosis despite cleaning the feeders weekly

 

[Millet]

Millions here

On the other hand we've been seeing a few Chaffinches and Siskins with Trichomonosis despite cleaning the feeders weekly

For some reason the Chaffinches seem to suffer the worst with it.

 

[REDWOOD]

The field next to my apiary is alive with damsel flies in the summer and the swifts and swallows love them, I feel trepidation for my bees when this is happening.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Yes, don't mark your virgin queens....you know that spot is irresistible to those swallows

 

[Newbeebeekeeper]

I have put in the field a fly killer and it kills hundreds of flies every year. And now i have moved the bees here as well. Im worried now that the lack of flies might make the birds hunt the bees even more