There may be a honey bee nest on your property if you’ve seen a lot of honey bees. These nests are often hidden, and can be a bit difficult to find. Wondering where bees are most likely to nest? Here are 5 common places:
Honey bees (Apis mellifera) are extremely versatile when it comes to nesting locations. They build hives in both natural settings and manmade structures provided by beekeepers. Understanding where honey bees prefer to establish colonies can help promote their survival.
Natural Honey Bee Nests
In the wild, honey bees nest in enclosed, protective spaces that provide shelter from the elements and predators. Their ideal natural habitats include:
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Tree Hollows One of the most common nesting sites for feral honey bee colonies are hollows inside living trees such as oaks, poplars, birches, and sycamores The cavity needs to be large enough to accommodate honeycomb and provide adequate ventilation. Openings are often reduced with propolis to deter predators.
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Underground: Rock crevices, abandoned rodent burrows, and small caves offer another sheltered spot for wild honey bees to build comb and rear brood. These dark spaces stay at stable temperatures year-round.
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Manmade Structures Feral honey bee colonies may occupy cavities under the eaves of barns sheds houses, and other structures. Water meters, old tires, and electrical boxes also provide an enclosed space.
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Open Air Nests: In tropical climates, honey bees will construct hanging combs under overhangs of cliffs, trees, or buildings where they are protected from rain. These open air nests have the highest exposure to predators and elements.
When selecting a home, scout bees look for a cavity approximately 40 liters in volume. The space needs to be large enough to house food stores while maintaining the hive’s desired temperature.
Domesticated Beehives
Beekeepers provide artificial hives that mimic the enclosed spaces honey bees use in nature. Backyard apiaries keep colonies healthy and productive by controlling for ideal conditions.
The most common types of manmade beehives are:
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Langstroth Hives: Rectangular multi-frame hive bodies stacked to expand comb building space as the colony grows. This is the most widespread beehive used by beekeepers in the U.S.
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Top Bar Hives: A long box with removable top bars that hold hanging combs built vertically. Beekeepers do not need to lift heavy boxes to inspect this style of hive.
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Flow Hives: Frames are partially pre-built with plastic comb. Turning a key opens cells so honey can flow out without fully removing frames. This simplified design is beginner friendly.
Beekeepers may paint hives with bright colors and place them in areas with morning sun exposure and afternoon shade. Setting hives on stands helps deter some predators. Apiaries are ideally situated near flowering forage.
Benefits of Managed Hives
Raising honey bees in artificial hives allows beekeepers to:
- Control parasites through integrated pest management
- Supplement food during times of scarcity
- Split hives to prevent overcrowding
- Harvest surplus honey and beeswax
- Move colonies away from inhospitable conditions
Well-managed honey bee colonies produce more honey and can better withstand diseases and harsh weather. Migratory beekeeping transports hives to orchards and crops for pollination services. Backyard hobbyists find beekeeping rewarding and enjoy the sweet honey rewards.
Whether in nature or the apiary, honey bees construct intricate hives adapted to their location. Understanding their nesting habits helps conserve these essential pollinators.
In Eaves and Soffits
Because eaves and soffits are often isolated, they often make a great nesting place for bees. Eaves and soffits are often placed close to the roofline of a house. If you don’t fix the problem right away, bees may use them to build a nest in your roof. Repairing a roof costs a lot of money, so getting rid of bees from the eaves and soffits quickly is important to stop more from coming in.
One of the hardest places to get rid of bees is in hollow trees, where they often build their nests. It can be hard to find all the ways into the hive and use the right amount of pesticide. Luckily, professionals in pest control are resourceful and will do everything they can to get rid of your problem for you.
Behind Siding and Brick
Honey Bees can build a new house with just an 1/8-inch gap between the siding and the brick. Because brick and siding often have ventilation gaps, it is not uncommon for bees to nest behind them. These nests can be hard to find, and if they aren’t taken care of quickly, they can get pretty big.
Concrete blocks have gaps that make the ideal safe place for a honey bee’s nest. Similar to brick and siding, these nests can be hard to spot. A pest control professional is trained to find these nests and to remove them properly.
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FAQ
How do you find a honey bee nest?
Do honey bees build a nest in the ground?
What does a honey bee nest look like?
Where are honey bee nesting sites?
Where do honey bee hives nest?
Honey Bee Hives, or Colonies look for nesting space any place possible above ground. That crack in the side of your house, the spare tire lying on the ground, a cozy tree hallow, these are all places a honey bee colony may choose as a nest site.
Where do bees build their nests?
An African bee, Serapista, builds nests out of plant fiber, animal fur, and bird feathers glued to plant stems. Social bees, like honey bees and bumblebees, build their nests in cavities above or below ground. Honey bees build their nests in the open (some Asian species do this) or in cavities, such as tree hollows.
Where do honeybees live?
Honeybees are social bees that live in big family units with a queen, drones (males), and workers (females). Honeybee colonies are big, containing anywhere between 10,000 to 60,000 honeybees. Honeybees usually nest in empty holes inside trees. Occasionally, honeybees will also create their nests in open cavities around your home.
Where do Asian honey bees build their nests?
Honey bees build their nests in the open (some Asian species do this) or in cavities, such as tree hollows. The giant Asian honey bees (Apis dorsata and Apis laboriosa) construct massive nests on vertical cliffs or high in trees. Harvesting honey from these bees is a dangerous business.
What is a honey bee nest?
Continue reading to learn about honey bee nests and how to identify them. Bees are creatures of habit and like to build their nests in very specific locations, which will vary depending on the species. For example, bumble bees prefer ground-based nests, while honey bees choose sites like hollow trees, caves, and rock crevices.
How do honey bees find a nest?
Honey bees search for suitable cavities for their nest. Usually the searching is done by scout bees from a swarm. The European bees seldom move very far from the original homesite. From numerous studies their nest selection criteria involve: Volume . bees prefer 40 liters (range 20 to 100 liters).