Bees Swarming the chick feed???

[pjknust]

Why all of a sudden the past week are the bees hovering over my chick feeder and wont go away. The chicks wont eat them either.
Whats in that dry chick feed that the bees are after??? Just this past week...........

pam in TX

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

It's been so hot, especially in your neck of the woods, the bees are probably desperate for a food source. The honey flow is going on right now so they are probably in a panic to get honey stored for the winter.

You could try putting out some sugar water for the bees in a separate area to distract them from the chicken feed.

Recipe:
2 ½ quarts water
5 lbs. white granulated sugar

Bring water to a rolling boil then remove from the heat. Add sugar, mixing thoroughly. Do not allow this to remain on the heat as you will caramelize the sugar which will cause your bees to become ill.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

They're after a pollen substitute. They need more than simply nectar they need flower pollen as well. Right at the moment there may not be enough forage (pollen) for them so they are looking for whatever they can get. The soybean meal in the chick starter makes an acceptable substitute.

 

[southerndesert]

We switched from mash to pellets and the problem was solved....

 

[Cock-L-Doodle Garoo]

I'm having a bunch of bees at my wild bird feeders which have really driven allot of the birds away. Even the white-wing doves haven't been around much since. I think they are going for the sorghum in the all the milo that's in the feed. I've never seen them like that so I'm going to try the sugar water thing.

 

[pjknust]

I made the sugar water, hope it works,
I plan to switch to pellets when they start layer feed.

thanks!!

pam in TX

 

[Pele]

Quote:
yeeeeeeeeeesh! If I walked outside to see/hear that, my fanny would be inside and I'd be

through the window!

I agree with the others, give the bees something else to swarm. As much has they creep me out, we need as many honeybees as we can get nowadays, so I vote no trapping or flypapering them.