What To Do About A Bee Hive On Your Tampa Property

Few creatures are as admired and idolized as the humble little bee. They are immensely beneficial to both us and the environment around us, with a huge number of plants relying on their pollination to survive.

Bees are smallish insects, usually raging from 1/2 to 1 inch in size, with most common species colored in black and yellow stripes. In our area, you're likely to run into the following bee species:

• Carpenter bees
• Bumble bees
• European honey bees

As beneficial as bees are, they will sting to defend themselves or their nest, making them less than desirable neighbors in your backyard.

Let's take a look at the role bees play in our ecosystem, what attracts them to our homes, and what is the safest bee control approach that Tampa pest control professionals recommend.

About The Role Bees Play In Our Ecosystem

Bees are the cornerstone of the ecosystem around us, ensuring the plants we rely on for survival propagate and survive as they buzz around, pollinating and gathering nectar for their hive. A number of plants have evolved specific characteristics to drive bees to their flowers, employing the smells and colors they are attracted to. 

Bees pollinate most of the food crops we rely on and produce one of nature's most beneficial compounds-honey. Honey is a true superfood; it is used as a cure for a number of ailments in natural medicine, stores forever without the need for refrigeration, and has been commonly used as a dressing before the invention of antibiotics. Even the venom bees produce as they sting is wildly used as a treatment for arthritis and other diseases.

Why Bees In The Yard Can Be A Problem

As with everything else in nature, most beneficial things turn harmful when their numbers grow out of proportion. Bees are not likely to sting without serious provocation, but a lot of behavior that comes naturally to our children and pets is seen as aggressive by bees. Fast movement of the extremities, running away, and waiving your hand to drive the bee off will sometimes result in a painful sting and death of the bee itself. Bees do not survive using their stingers.

In people with a predisposition to bee venom allergy, a bee sting can result in a serious allergic reaction, with extreme cases ending in death without prompt medical attention.

Factors Bees Look For When Building A Hive

Without bees, your yard will become a lifeless, depressing proposition, but an explosion of their number will put you and your loved ones at a constant risk of a sting. The trick to keeping the areas you spend most of your time in bee free is to remove things that attract them.

Bees are attracted to:

• Bright colors
• The smell of sugary drinks and garbage
• Damp areas and access to water
• The smell of an abandoned hive 
• Easy entry to an area that might serve as a nest
• Unpainted wood, which might attract carpenter bees

The trick to coexisting with bees is finding that perfect middle ground where the existence of neither them nor us is intruding on day to day life of the other.

Contact Us For Help To Safely Remove A Bee Hive

Here at Wise Owl Plus, we have many years of experience when it comes to removing beehives from homes without endangering either their occupants or our clients whose property the bees have chosen to move into.

We use traditional and contemporary, eco-friendly bee pest control methods to ensure that you and yours can spend time in your backyard without worrying about being stung. If your backyard is overwhelmed with bees and you need help, give us a call to get started and to learn more about our residential and commercial pest control services in Tampa.