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lori68_gw

Bees on my Hummingbird Feeder~~Someone help me!

lori68
16 years ago

What can i do about the bees on my Hummingbird feeder?? The past couple of days these bees are invading my feeder and i don't know what to do about them. They chase my hummingbirds away from the feeder...and i don't like that at all!!! i love my Hummingbirds and i have to get rid of these pesty bees! What can i do????

Comments (23)

  • Aleahh
    16 years ago

    lori68: welcome to our world of Hummers :) Its great fun.
    today I recieved 2 Hummzinger Hummingbird feeders which I
    purchased of Ebay. These are called Hummzinger Excel. The
    saucer type which jeffrey_m_grower just told you of. I already
    had 2 Perky Pet bottle type, but they dont have bee guards.
    And YES they get coverd with bees. Flys can even get INSIDE
    them. Everytime I change nectar theres a fly or 2 inside Uggh!
    From visiting the Hummzinger website I see the ones I got
    today are not the type which I can add bee-guards but these
    are alot more resistent then the bottle type cause the
    insects cant reach the nectar. I also got a set of 4 hand feeders from ebay but they DRIP like mad. So that was a lost
    cause! Anyway.. this whole thing of getting feeders is a
    learning experience but at least Ill be all set for next yr
    :) Now all I need to do is get the right plants planted to
    attract them :) good luck and enjoy.

  • scaldude
    16 years ago

    HummZinger is the best, I have 2 Excel models.

  • nva_birdcrazy
    16 years ago

    The color YELLOW attracts bees and wasps. Make sure that the feeding ports don't have any yellow on them. If they do, then take them off. They are usually just plastic pieces that you can take off with your fingernail. At least, that's the case with the Perky Pet brand.

    I too, recommend the Hummzinger. It's a wonderful feeder! Wild Birds Unlimited also sells them under a different name - but they are essentially the same feeder.

  • lori68
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    Thanks everyone for helping me! i went to a pet food center here and they recommended the perky brand with the yellow plastic bee guards in the ports that keeps the bees from getting to the nectar. The bees are still buzzing around it but they can not get to the sweet stuff! FUNNY!
    I would show u a pic of it..but i don't know how to attach a pic here.

  • nva_birdcrazy
    16 years ago

    The yellow bee guards keep the bees and wasps from getting to the nectar, but they also keep the hummingbirds from feeding. My recommendation is to get rid of all yellow on the feeder. Take the bee guards off and snap the plastic flowers off the Perky Pet feeder. Then, and only then, will you get rid of the bees and wasps.

  • hummersteve
    16 years ago

    Sorry guys Im not convinced on the humzingers and not having any yellow on the feeders doesnt keep the bees away, at least not the wasps Ive been plagued with all summer. My theory is even with the bowl typy and bee guards helps, I guess but the hummers sometimes get sloppy and drip nectar on the outside of base from their tongue/beak and this sticky is what the bees are after, but I may try a humzinger type next summer and see.

  • Aleahh
    16 years ago

    nva_birdcrazy Seenms like if I took the plastic flowers off
    the insects would just fall into the nectar?? On my Hummzinger I might get one bee.. but on the bottle type of Perky Pet
    there are 25 bees if theres one! First the bees chase the Hummers then the Hummers chase them. The Hummers give up and
    feed at the neighbors :/

  • nva_birdcrazy
    16 years ago

    If you take the YELLOW plastic flowers off, the bees won't be attracted to the feeder. So, you won't have a bee problem. Yes, there may be a stray one or two at times...but I doubt you'll even have that. I once had the exact same problem that you currently have. That's why I'm speaking from experience. I took the yellow plastic flowers off two of my hummingbird feeders because of all the bees/wasps. Voila. No more bees and wasps. Use the nectar guard tips with the Hummzinger and you definitely won't have a problem. I don't have the nectar tips, but some people do. I haven't had a single bee or wasp on two of my feeders all Summer. See the earlier posts. Try these suggestions before disbelieving. Enough said.

  • myoneandonly
    16 years ago

    I have the hummzinger shown in the photo above and for two years it had only a yellow jacket or two. This year we have been so plagued with yellow jackets, that yesterday I had to remove the feeder closest to our door. These are not the big, noisy bumble bees that bump into you and go passively on their way, these are nasty, stinging things that buzz around your face, come back aggressively if you try to shoo them away, and even continue to chase after you if you run from them. I think HummerSteve is correct when he says that they are attracted to the sweetness that gets dripped on the side of the feeder. I don't dispute that they find yellow attractive, but they'll go after anything that's very sweet, like grapes on the vine or fallen fruit of any color. They seem to get more aggressive as the summer wanes and their usual food sources start dwindling. Then it's easy pickings at the old hummer feeder. I checked this morning, and they have left the deck where the feeder was hung, but so has my hummer and that makes me unhappy. I will try the bee guards next season. I'll try whatever works.

  • jeffrey_m_grower
    16 years ago

    The HummZingers with the Nectar guards do the trick. We even have honeybee hives out back & they never bother the HummZingers or our hummers

  • nva_birdcrazy
    16 years ago

    That's a great testimonial for the nectar guards. Wild Birds Unlimited sells a package of them for $4.99, and this is the first year I've seen our local store carry them. I have two Hummzingers - and plan to purchase nectar guards for both.

  • rjinga
    16 years ago

    I set out a YELLOW bowl with some of the nectar in it, just below a feeder that I had...the bees flock to it...Since then I have taken down that particular feeder because it would leak (hence the bowl below it) and the bees still come to it...

    Now a sad part to this story...EVERYDAY I have to fish out 5+ bees (the small yellow jackets I think they are) who get stuck in it...mind you, it's not even thick or sticky, but watery (we had some rain that got mixed in) but for some unknown reason they land on it, and cant get out....As much trouble that bees in general have, I feel compelled to help them out...so I dumped out most of the nectar, maybe this will help...Moths and many other flying insects have also been lured in by this bowl of sugar water, and they too tend to get trapped...very strange.

    BUT they do keep away mostly now from the feeders....the bowl is their private feeder!!!

  • vieja_gw
    16 years ago

    I too for the first time this year have had problems with the wasps chasing the hummers away from the feeders and the feeders have no yellow at all on them. I saw some bee guards that fit over the holes but they were yellow(!) & it looked like they were too deep so that even the hummers couldn't reach the nectar. One suggestion on this site earlier said to wrap a cloth soaked in vinegar around the feeder glass but that had no effect on the wasps at all! The Hummmzingers shown here don't appear to have any guard on them though? Do you have to buy the guards separately & install them?

    Funny, so many have had this problem mainly this year; I never did before!

    - vieja

  • nicknackhummer
    16 years ago

    I really don't think yellow has anything to do with attracting bees. I think it's the dripping nectar from the feeder or hummers, as HummerSteve said. One of my best feeders, Dr. JB's, www.drjbs.com has yellow ports. I've never seen a bee on the feeder. In fact, the only feeder I've seen bees near, and it was very late in the summer, was my Droll Yankees saucer feeder. It has red ports. I can't explain it, because they can't reach the nectar from the top and it doesn't leak. Droll Yankees does have bee guards now, but my feeder is about ten years old--can't attach them to this one. I may get a Hummzinger to replace it next year.

    Just wanted to add, too, the hummers can feed with the PerkyPet bee guards. Their tongues fit through and can get to the ports. I've used the PerkyPet Four Fountains with and without the bee guards. I don't seem to need the bee guards with that feeder though.

    Carol R

  • cjsans
    9 years ago

    This is the 1st year we have a yellow jacket problem. We also have a few bees as well. I have the pictured feeder - as far as I can tell. In the center of mine is a well that is filled with water. This drowns, unfortunately, both yellow jackets and honey bees indiscriminately. There is no yellow on the feeder or the bottle feeder next to it. It really doesn't make a dent in the jacket population, mainly because there is a jacket hive 100 feet from the feeders. I am hoping that yellow jackets hibernate the same as bees. My husband works with liquid nitrogen. The hive will be destroyed when everything is frozen over. They are living in a broken down bird house on the ground at the moment. Bye bye yellow jackets.
    No liquid nitrogen? Try setting the hive on fire with gasoline. Winter only, please.

  • Pyewacket
    9 years ago

    OMG, NOT gasoline! The fumes are explosive. If you must use a fuel to burn them out, use kerosene. Just make sure you're not violating any city ordinances or you could have some very angry firemen asking you what the $*@$&@& you are doing.

    There is a bee guard specially made for the Hummzinger. They're cheap. I'm pretty sure they're on Amazon. I have a set but have not had to use them.

  • rober49
    9 years ago

    the yellow jackets die in the winter but the queen survives & starts a new colony in the spring. I have a bottle type feeder with the yellow flowers at the feeding holes. it seems to run in cycles but there might be an occasional bee or 2 at the feeder & then suddenly it will be loaded with bees for a day & then not. I have a lot of stuff blooming here & the heavy bee days may be days when the pollen &/or nectar is at lower level on the flowers. I have 6 bee hives on my property which is potentially 360,00 bees & the days when the bees overrun the feeders are few & far between, I have traps for yellow jackets & moths. yellow jackets can be harmful to bees as can wax moths.

  • cjsans
    9 years ago

    Do yellow jacket queens start their new colony elsewhere or stay around the area? This is the 1st year for yellow jackets, or bees for that matter, and we have had feeders for 30 some years. The feeders don't have a bee guard but the red one, like in the picture, does have an ant guard. Nothing gets in that feeder, and it's the preferred feeder of the two. Got it on Amazon.

  • rober49
    9 years ago

    that would depend on where the nest is. if in the ground she'd have a good chance for survival & might stay put. if in an open nest or say an abandoned bird house she'd need to seek a warmer location. if you can locate the nest destroy it after spraying them or when they've gone dormant. if in the ground get a gallon of a good pesticide & mix it in a bucket with some liquid dish soap & pour it into the hole with a funnel. do this after they've gone dormant or if you have a problem nest during the warmer weather pour the mix in at night. wear long pants & sleeves, a hat, gloves, & cover your face with a bandana. pour it quickly & run like h**l. I know some will poo-poo this but gasoline or diesel fuel in a ground nest works too. if you're not up to it call a pro. yellow jackets & hornets can be quite aggressive . anyone in the St Louis area can contact me for swarm captures & bee removals from buildings & trees. this would be for honeybees only. 99.999 % of the calls I get after mid august are usually yellow jackets.

  • Cardio
    9 years ago

    Hello -I'm new to this forum and to hummingbirds, but to me they are the equivalent to Unicorns, except, you can actually see them. It's magic! I was taking care of a neighbours plants in our building this summer and was fascinated by her feeders and the traffic! I didn't even know we had hummers in this area ( Vancouver Canada ) We had a big problem with wasps this year, and she keeps her feeders unattractive to them by rubbing a bit of cooking oil on the ports. It deters the wasps and seems to have no effect on the hummers. I've since bought a feeder, took her advice and although it took weeks to get a visitor, it was "Clark" - a hummer, and no sight of a wasp at all.

  • oldfixer
    9 years ago

    I prefer one where they can sit. No bee problem here. The most unusual guest was an Oriole.

  • mehitabel
    9 years ago

    Wonderful pictures, OldFixer. Made me smile, thanks :)

    Cardio: Thanks for the tip about cooking oil. Will definitely try it next summer.

    Your comment about unicorns captured the essence of the little guys. Wonderful creatures. I'm glad you got to enjoy your very own little guy.

    If you have a place to put up a wire near the feeder, you'll find he comes to perch there to guard his feeder. I love seeing one sit on my wire. They'll often spend most of the day on the wire. My very last sight of one this fall was a little guy sitting on the wire, all puffed up trying to keep warm on a cold day.

  • Cardio
    9 years ago

    I feel so lucky and blessed that I have at least one hummer, so yesterday put up another feeder. "Clark" still seems to be the only visitor, so he will have plenty of food, and he seems to be pretty comfortable on my balcony in spite of "Boo" my curious cat. I keep my windows closed to keep "Boo" inside, and "Clark" seems to understand that he is out of danger - he will sit on the back of my satellite dish long enough to collect himself before flying off, unfortunately not long enough for me to get my camera and capture that magical moment. Perhaps he is teaching me not to capture the moment - but to simply enjoy it. Maybe I'm the birdbrain?

    This post was edited by Cardio on Wed, Oct 29, 14 at 3:15

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