I was watching the hive today when I noticed a dragonfly was doing the same from a nearby rock. A few minutes later, the same dragonfly landed on the side of the hive, right by the entrance and was watching the bees enter. I think I mumbled something such as "Don't touch my bees dragonfly!" before it flew away.
My question is, has anyone had any trouble with dragonflies eating bees? I didn't see this happen, but it looked suspicious. And if one does it, I have about 30 or so dragonflies that hang around my house so I'm afraid the bee casualties would be high if they took a liking to bee taste.
Thanks for your input. :)
I've seen them take a bee on occasion, but I really don't think they could cause any real detriment to the colony. Even with 30 or more dragonflies eating say 2 or 3 bees a day it wouldn't be such a great loss to a strong hive. Of course, I live in mosquito country and tend to favor the dragons!
Scott
i have like 10 to 15 around my hives late in the day.they are good at getting the bees.but i don't see that as a problem.more bees drown in my pool than what they eat. ...schawee
i have them also. i don't see them as a problem.
They eat my bees, but not much
SSS
You just have to be a really good shot with the pellet gun.
i see them around, and i'm not concerned about them eating a few bees. queens on mating flights, however, fly slow and are big and juicy. if you have a lot of dragonflys around and are mating queens, you might keep an eye on things.
deknow
I heard that if you bring a few barn swallows that they will take care of your Dragonfly problem
Quote from: danno on June 03, 2010, 09:31:33 AM
I heard that if you bring a few barn swallows that they will take care of your Dragonfly problem
Barm swallows will eat Dragonfly and Honey Bees :roll:
BEE HAPY Jim 134 :)
Quote from: Jim 134 on June 03, 2010, 10:18:22 AM
Quote from: danno on June 03, 2010, 09:31:33 AM
I heard that if you bring a few barn swallows that they will take care of your Dragonfly problem
Barm swallows will eat Dragonfly and Honey Bees :roll:
BEE HAPY Jim 134 :)
It was a joke!!! I just said that because of another recent thread about barn swallow problems and someone posted they eat bugs
I shoot them too good target practice :evil:
Quote from: danno on June 03, 2010, 01:41:11 PM
Quote from: Jim 134 on June 03, 2010, 10:18:22 AM
Quote from: danno on June 03, 2010, 09:31:33 AM
I heard that if you bring a few barn swallows that they will take care of your Dragonfly problem
Barm swallows will eat Dragonfly and Honey Bees :roll:
BEE HAPY Jim 134 :)
It was a joke!!! I just said that because of another recent thread about barn swallow problems and someone posted they eat bugs
Barm swallows eat all kinds of flying bugs
BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)
Quote from: Irwin on June 03, 2010, 01:59:10 PM
I shoot them too good target practice :evil:
LOL
I got the joke danno! :-D
A real knee slapper!
To beat a dead horse, they do eat bees but not to the point of concern.
The other day there was a dragon fly on the side of the hive eating a bee that had her sacks full of bright orange pollen. The dragon fly looked like he/she ate a bag of cheetos.
Thanks for all the input. It doesn't seem like it will be a problem and the dragonflies are really interesting to watch.
Good thought about the mating queens. At this point, I don't have to worry about that though.
Thank you.
I learn something every day. I didn't know dragonflies were pestivorous. Never really thought about their food source, actually.
Well, I just learned a new word.
Luvin...even in their larval form in the water, they are well adapted predators. Some even stay in the water for a a few years in the larval stage, eating all of the water insects. :)
Quote from: AllenF on June 03, 2010, 09:58:03 PM
Well, I just learned a new word.
Ha! Please don't actually use that word. :)
I paid 25 cents for that word. I want my 2 bits worth.