Swallows are sealing their future

[Busy Bee]

Hi


This evening for the 1st in quite a while I noticed a large contingent of swallows availing of my flying bees and by this I am not impressed.

Busy Bee

 

[dpearce4]

I have been living at the same address for the last 16yrs and today saw my first ever bat. is was swooping over my hives. one of which i was in the process of hiving a swarm collected today.

was really surprised and impressed. the bat was about 6inchs wing tip to wing tip no idea what it was.

 

[fatshark]

Pipistrelle almost certainly at that size ... though there are two species and they're almost impossible to distinguish between them other than by DNA testing or the pitch of their echo location squeaks. The 'higher' one is called the Soprano Pipistrelle.

 

[Winker]

i have had a bunch of swallows camp teh end of my garden since they got here this year. 10 years i have lived in this house, never have we had swallows camp the endof our garden untill we got bees!

 

[enrico]

1 bat, you are so lucky I have about 50 in my roof. Keep the midges down though. Luckily they don't come out in force until the bees are in bed!
E

 

[dpearce4]

Pipistrelle almost certainly at that size ... though there are two species and they're almost impossible to distinguish between them other than by DNA testing or the pitch of their echo location squeaks. The 'higher' one is called the Soprano Pipistrelle.

god only had bees since end of april started with 1 hive, split this into 2 got the swarm today thats 3.

i only thought i was going to be a bee keeper didnt think i would end up being a wildlife warden to lol

note to self google animals that eat bees in south east england. prepare for what else will turn up.

 

[Ed Woods]

A few mere swallows!

Pity my poor bees

This is the side of my house covered with hundreds of the buggers

 

[Chris Luck]

When was that photo taken?

Chris

 

[DarynWebb]

Looks dusky might just of stopped to roost for the night?

 

[Stiffy]

Pipistrelle almost certainly at that size ... though there are two species and they're almost impossible to distinguish between them other than by DNA testing or the pitch of their echo location squeaks. The 'higher' one is called the Soprano Pipistrelle.

Hi Fatshark
There are actually three pipistrelle species in the UK, Common, Soprano and Nathusius although the latter is even rarer. Common and Soprano are 'normally' easily seperated by colour and facial marking but you may have to look at wing veination or echolocation calls for a final distinction.
Cheers
S

 

[Chris Luck]

Looks dusky might just of stopped to roost for the night?

I meant what time of the year.

Chris

 

[keithgrimes]

1 bat, you are so lucky I have about 50 in my roof. Keep the midges down though. Luckily they don't come out in force until the bees are in bed!
E

ditto - some nights I have dozens zooming over the tree tops picking up midges (I'm on a riverbank so there is no shortage of midges). Watching them is a lovely way to pass half an hour with a cold glass of white.

 

[Cazza]

Hi


This evening for the 1st in quite a while I noticed a large contingent of swallows availing of my flying bees and by this I am not impressed.

Busy Bee

How lovely to have swallows. We have lost ours over the past few years. I would happily feed them some bees to be able to watch them wheel overhead again.
Cazza

 

[Midland Beek]

Where is the credible information that tells you that swallows eat bees? I think if they did eat bees I would have noticed one or two of them at my apiary by now.

 

[Chris Luck]

Credible information? You having a laugh? There isn't any, nor for sparrows, great tits or whatever, but it just isn't worth posting about. Nor do bats eat bees, but then they only come out at dusk as a rule unless disturbed.

Even bee-eaters don't eat bees as rule in France, they eat grasshoppers, dragonflies, wasps and hornets.

Chris

 

[PaleoPerson]

Try telling the magpies in the garden, they stick their heads in the entrance and grab one or two and then leg it.

 

[fatshark]

Thanks Stiffy
A quick web search turned up a dedicated website for this rarest Pipistrelle - only 650 records, but presumably indistinguishable on the wing, so perhaps commoner in some areas? Very interesting.
fatshark

 

[nosmoking]

Try telling the magpies in the garden, they stick their heads in the entrance and grab one or two and then leg it.

My .22 will sort them out!