Ground Bees a chicken threat?

[redoak]

Are ground bees any threat to chickens if they have access to the area of the ground nest? I have a nest in the ground along their larger (while we are home) enclosure. If disturbed they like to swarm and attack the intruder. I found them accidently this morning, and too bad I wasn't in the 100m at the Olympics. I'm worried they might swarm the chickens if they start scratching in the general area. Thanks in advance for any advice/info.

Edit: Any advice on how to get rid of them, besides 5 gallons of gas and a few missing eyebrows?

 

[kees]

Yellowjackets can make nests the size of pots and have several thousant occupants. When one is killed, they emit a sound which humans can't hear which causes the rest to begin to swarm. At dusk, get the spray insulation foam from the hardware store and fill up the entire hole. Leave it alone for several days. Then when you don't see any more of them in your yard, it may take a while, dig up the nest, and throw everything in a garbage bag quickly and tie it up and toss it away.

 

[arlee453]

I get the cheap wasp spray in the can at the store. The cheap brands tend not to foam as much...

Wait until dark. That way all the critters will be INSIDE the nest and they will not come after you at night. Trust me - not a single one will fly out if you do this right...

Get your can ready, shook up and all that. Then shine your flashlight on the hole and empty the ENTIRE can down the hole. That is why the cheap, non-foaming spray works best - it will run right down into the hole and kill all those suckers.

I just killed two nests last night my daughter was so kind as to find for me while mowing this week - I got the clearance special brand at TSC for a grand total of $3.50 with tax for two cans - and not a single yellow jacket buzzing around the holes today.

I figure insecticide probably isn't that great of a thing to pour down a hole in the ground, but is probably better than gasoline...

 

[Jillylam]

My Wendy Chicken got stung. We have a ton of clover and there are bees all over it. Her poor little cheek swelled up along with the skin by the corner of her beak and just under her eye. It took about a week to go down and it was gone by the second week. Last year we had yellow jacket nests under a huge pine tree and in some smaller bushes. I did the night exterminating too. I definitely wouldn't leave those nests. Your chickens will get stung. Good luck and bee careful getting rid of them.

 

[mommy9994]

I get MOST of my bird advice from my mother, as she's raised them for 70 years.

According to her, if a chicken eats a bee/wasp/yellowjacket it can sting the crop and kill it.

BTW, a yellowjacket is not a bee, it is related to the hornet, and my boys just found a nest for me this week-- how kind-- they also ran into the house when they found it, bringing the little demons in with them!! I put my girls (4 and 17 months) in the bedroom, and 13 yo boy and I killed the ones that got in the house. I used the spray to kill the nest (flyswatters in the house), but I would use something non-toxic if they were where the chickens might get it-- don't know what yet.

 

[Darin115]

The cheapest way is to mix up several gallons of soapy water. Wait until after dark and pour the soapy water into the hole until it is full. They will drown in the soapy water.

Works everytime. Guaranteed. You must put soap in the water. I used dish detergent.

Darin