Bees in my bonnet......

[Admiral]

....or to be more precise causing a nuisance flying in and out of a crack between the back porch and the back wall of the house.

Pretty sure these are honey bees because I've been stung twice getting too near their entry point(s).

Waited more than 60 years for a bee sting and two come along at once.  Painful and numbing so I'm not in a hurry for a repeat injection.

Sooo.....do I zap the little buggers now?  Are they protected?  Is there a queen in there?  What are they up to?  Do they damage buildings?  Do I need to spend money on professionals to look at the problem?

Or....will they just die off over winter?

[Fred]

I thought I would hold off on answering in the hope that someone may have a good answer, be we could be here for months and the bees will either be gone or you will be covered in stings.

It's a difficult one but my thoughts would be.

#1 They are not protected. Yes they are enanged and we shoulkd try to preserve them, but if they are casuing problems then you may have to act.

#2 I wouldn't have thought they will damage the building.

#3 Yes the queen is probably in there and that is why they will sting you.

#4 I wouldn't call a professional, though it may be worth getting a devis or asking your Mayor.

#5 Do they bother you that much? If you can calmly walk past them and try not to use the door that often they probably will just get on with their job and ignore you.

#6 Someone told me once that they never go back to the same spot. However we have had them near our shed for the pasrt 3 years. They never bother us, and we just make sure not to stand on any.

#7 If all else fails I would get myself a can of expanding foam, shove it in the hole and give a damn good squirt. Not nice but I would imagine it will quickly suffocate them all and at the same time seal the whole up.

* I accept no reponsibilty if you get chased down the street by thousands of their buddies who live nearby. Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I'm sure more sensibler answers will follow now I've bumped up this thread.

[little Al]

Could Mrs Admiral dress up in a stripey top, and entice them away..........?????
Failing that, I`d avoid spray expanding foam,as it looks unsightly......and just buy some powder and puff it down. I just used some on a small wasp nest discovered hidden in my lavender when I was trimming it this afternoon. No sign of them now.

[Admiral]

Thanks folks for the hundreds of replies to this query...er.....Fred and little Al.

Strangely, I thought that living in the heart of rural France there would be loads of people rushing forward wiith solutions to help an old townie - moi.

The French plumber fellow who came round to do the annual ramonage on the cheminess said they were't honeybees but carpenter bees which would account for the continual "scratching" noise I could hear.

Anyway, I think I've resolved the problem by hitting them with a foudroyant bombe as night fell.  The following day there were only a couple flying around in a lost and sort of aimless fashion.  Must have been on a sortie when I launched my Donald Trump option.

Gold medals for Fred and little Al for at least coming forward with ideas.