Dead Bees

[Manic__Moo]

Ok I know everyone is always going on about the declining bee populations and I've always thought it was a bit over the top.
But I live in the UK in a suburban area and in the last week I've noticed a lot of dead bees on the pavements around my area some just look like they've landed there and never taken off and this was before all the heavy rain.
I was just wondering if anyone has noticed anything similar around where they live or knows what would cause this.

 

[lee1287]

there is a wasp nest in my shed... I Don't care, they sting me, well, they are better than wasps. I fucking hate wasps.

 

[Lionsfan]

I just killed a bunch of bees in my garage. Does that count?

 

[Sephychu]

It is weird when you see it first, but it does just happen. Old age for bees is a few weeks or months.

Sad, too.

 

[Dr. wonderful]

Bees...My god...

On a side note, I never really saw any dead bees.

 

[Shoggoth2588]

The cicadas that come out every 2 decades are weirder if you've ever seen that. Last time they came out in my area was when I was in high school. There were all of these husks EVERYWHERE and every now and then you'd see a live one. Ugly bastards.

I hate bees and don't care if they die. Seems like a natural occurrence anyway.

 

[Pyro Paul]

disease caused that most likely.
more than likely some one brought back a parasite or disease which carries a high mortality rate amongst standard honey bees as they have no natralized defence against it.

 

[Dags90]

I generally see more wasps than bees, pesky yellow jackets. Some people blame pollution, some people say it's a virus or other parasite. I don't think it's much of a problem. The worst are the people who say it'd be the end of civilization, as if everything we eat is pollinated by bees and there are no suitable non bee pollinated alternatives.

I remember when there was a cicada surfacing at our old house. Was crazy and annoying as hell. So much noise from such little creatures.

 

[Sir_Tor]

there is a wasp nest in my shed... I Don't care, they sting me, well, they are better than wasps. I fucking hate wasps.

What? You have a wasp nest in your shed and they are stinging you, but it's better than having wasps stinging you?

 

[The Procrastinated End]

Not that many dead bees where I live
they must be hiding

 

[lee1287]

there is a wasp nest in my shed... I Don't care, they sting me, well, they are better than wasps. I fucking hate wasps.

What? You have a wasp nest in your shed and they are stinging you, but it's better than having wasps stinging you?

Lol. Noo. i have a wasps nest in my shed. END. i dont care bees are dieing, they sting me. Two pointsi was making, Sorry.

 

[child of lileth]

This is the first time I've heard of any of this. But no, I haven't seen many dead bees here. A few living ones a day kind of go by when I'm out places, but they don't seem as eager to annoy me, or try to sting me as every other year.

 

[lacktheknack]

About six wasps died in our car in one day with one open window... Hrmmm...

 

[wyrdbrew]

I'm not familiar with the degree of losses in the UK but there are severe bee losses all over the world, primarily from two types of mites: tracheal mites and varroa destructor mites. Another major source of losses in the US and Spain is a disease called nosema ceranae. The degree of the losses aren't overblown. 35% of the hives in the US didn't make through the 2009-2010 winter. Replacing losses on that level is possible but it is expensive. To put it into perspective, before the mites were accidentally introduced from China, the typical winter loss was around 5%.

What you are seeing is likely caused by pesticides but it is hard to know without knowing more. It could just be the place where the bees from a nearby hive drop the dead bees they remove from inside the colony. Bees carry their dead out of the hive which reduces diseases from being spread through the colony.

 

[MostlyHarmless]

So, the bees are disappearing? This gives me flashbacks to Doctor Who.

Anyways, good riddance to them. I hate bees.