wasps? or bees?

[poppys35]

hello, can anyone please help me with this?

i have an ivy in my garden which covers an old bird table, after some years this time it has flowers on it and i have also noticed it is covered in wat looks like wasps? very large they are too..

they seem too be enjoying the flowers. i will leave alone if i think they are bees but if there wasps will have to do something about them?

mrs j from perth in scotland

[The Woodman]

Hi Mrs j

Ivy flowers are attracting all sorts of insects near me too. Several wasps, bees, bee flies and hover flies.

If they are wasps (and likely to be) and are not causing you any problems, I would leave them alone to get on with enjoying the ivy.

[Hedera]

There are a lot of wasps on my ivy flowers at the moment, mostly small ones but some larger. They are yellow and black striped, whereas bees are brown and softer yellow, and are larger usually. No need to do anything about them, they will die off soon when winter arrives. It's a case of feast and be merry!

[Jason Green]

Afternoon J, and welcome to WAB

No - they're harmless as long as you don't corner/handle them roughly !!

With Ivy at this time of year, though I don't know if your location is right for this one, is this bee - Eyes open for Colletes hederae It's a new-ish bee to the UK.

Can you get a photo for ID purposes, if you want one? Either that or a drawing?

Take care,

Jason

[Geoff F]

While Colletes hederae is rapidly spreading along the south coast, finding some in Perth would really be something to shout about.

There are so many bees and wasp/bee mimics that it is difficult to offer any firm suggestions without photos.

However it is getting late for many species now so common wasps are probably the most likely although if they are considerably larger than a standard wasp,some late bumblebees would be quite possible. Maybe Bombus terrestris, which is a rather hardy bee, might be worth a look.

[freefeet]

Originally Posted by poppys35

they seem too be enjoying the flowers. i will leave alone if i think they are bees but if there wasps will have to do something about them?

Don't hurt wasps, they're the best aphid control system i've ever come across.

I used to have loads on my allotment and they kept all my fruit bushes and trees stripped of aphids. I had the whole place organic so couldn't and wouldn't use insecticides.

The aphids would appear and start to collonise a bush or two, but then when a wasp finds them the whole nest descends and it's like watching a conveyor belt of wasps coming one after the other grabbing aphids.

4 years i had that allotment and the only time i got stung was when i stood on a bumble bee that was collecting on some clover, never once got stung by a wasp.

I actually feel sorry for wasps cause everyone hates them, but they're incredibly useful. We wouldn't need half the insecticides being used in this country if we only put the hedgerows back and allowed wasps and the like to live in peace and just do their thing.

[ChrisR]

Originally Posted by Geoff F

There are so many bees and wasp/bee mimics that it is difficult to offer any firm suggestions without photos.

Exactly - at this time of year Ivy is an incredibly valuable source of nectar for all flower-loving insects that either hibernate or just continue up to the last frosts. Any Ivy bush with flowers is likely to be a mass of bees, wasps, hoverflies and all manner of other insects - many of which mimic wasps and bees. Best to just let them get on with life and keep clear of them. Better still, take some photos and post them on here and we'll be able to give the OP some real IDs

[poppys35]

thanks everyone for your input on my bees/ wasps. i have heard of the ivy bee which looks very much like the wasp, but think you's are right prob wasps. but will get a pic asap and post it up. thanks again.