Do Birds get stung by Wasps? (2 Viewers)

Scott67 · Aug 15, 2003

Okay its 4:15pm I'm in work and the tedium is now getting to me, hence the rather Banal question.

However

My question has some relevence though as outside the office window is a pear tree, and on the ground lots of wind-fall pears, all through the day the Blackbirds have been pecking away, and numerous wasps are also buzzing around.

Now If I go out there I can guarantee that I'll be stung in to submission, but the Birds and the Wasps seem quite harmonious, So do they get Stung ?????

birdman · Aug 15, 2003

I suspect that bees and wasps do, on occasion attempt to sting birds, but probably all they end up doing is depositing the venom in the feathers.

Michael Frankis · Aug 15, 2003

Honey Buzzards certainly get stung when they raid wasps nests - they have special hard feathering around the head, and they're also more tolerant of venom than most other birds/animals

Michael

IanF · Aug 15, 2003

Bee-eater don't seem to be overly bothered, though the ones we had up our way last year seemed to sometimes be knocking or flicking the bees/wasps whatever against the telegraph wires before consuming them. I did wonder whether it was to stun them or perhaps get rid of the sting after squeezing it out with their bills ?

DaveN · Aug 15, 2003

I don't know about birds being stung but I've been bitten by a red ant doing my front lawn.
:C

Billy Boy

Euan Buchan · Aug 15, 2003

I got stung by a bee when i was little boy it hurt

smeltmill · Aug 18, 2003

Dear Scott,

A good question
Wasps and bees don’t usually sting unless their home is attacked or the individual is threatened, e.g. trapped in clothing.
So when a wasp or bee is foraging it will fly away if disturbed. Bees in particular use their sting as a last resort as it is barbed and can not be removed from skin, so the bee leaves it behind and subsequently dies. They do leave a signal (pheromone) which smells rather like nail varnish remover which brings out the fighting spirit in their colleagues who will home in on the victim. Generally unlike humans they do not attack without cause.

To answer your question.
Yes birds do get stung.
The tit family have learned to knock at the hive entrance and devour the bees that come out to investigate.
If a bee attempts to sting it will work is way to the base of the feathers until it does, as with hair or fir.
The birds are very much aware of this and fly off, they can fly faster than a wasp or bee who are limited to 15 mph, sit out of danger and try to remove the bee before it reaches the skin.

I doubt if a single sting would have much effect on a healthy bird but a multiple stinging could kill, probably from anaphylactic shock rather than the effect of venom.
Woodpeckers happily drill holes in hives looking for food and seem to survive the adventure.

If this answer prompts more questions please ask.

Regards .
Gordon Boreham-Styffe.

Pie Face · Aug 18, 2003

I don't know about birds but birders certainly do, I got stung in the toilets at the bird fair, on Friday, and my arms still swollen!!

catmrs · Sep 30, 2004

On holiday in Banffshire, Scotland this month a hornet like creature buzzed into our cottage late one evening. I know this is not related to previous posts, but can find no clues elsewhere. Husband gone to bed, I sat reading until I heard a very loud buzzing. It gradually came toward the light & me. At a distance it was mothlike, when it hovered around the lamp it looked like a giant wasp, not hairy like a bee, but smooth, very distinct yellow/black markings. From memory at leat 3 yellow bands one much wider. In flight about 35mm, body 15-20mm. According to the books hornets are not found in Scotland..so what was this creature? Only happened the 1 night even though I sat up waiting for its return! Ps; I had had a couple of drinks, but this was real!!

alcedo.atthis · Sep 30, 2004

"On holiday in Banffshire, Scotland this month a hornet like creature buzzed into our cottage late one evening. I know this is not related to previous posts, but can find no clues elsewhere. Husband gone to bed, I sat reading until I heard a very loud buzzing. It gradually came toward the light & me. At a distance it was mothlike, when it hovered around the lamp it looked like a giant wasp, not hairy like a bee, but smooth, very distinct yellow/black markings. From memory at leat 3 yellow bands one much wider. In flight about 35mm, body 15-20mm. According to the books hornets are not found in Scotland..so what was this creature? Only happened the 1 night even though I sat up waiting for its return! Ps; I had had a couple of drinks, but this was real!!"

Probably a harmless Wood Wasp. We get the odd one causing havoc around the shopping centre in Westhill. (Women and children flee for your lives. Look at the sting on that. Oops, ovipositer, not sting.)
More info at :-
http://www.offwell.free-online.co.uk/woodland_manage/ichneum.htm

Returning to the original subject of the thread, interestingly, when we have had Waxwings in the garden, we have noticed the alarm calls go up when the honey bees belonging to the gentleman from accross the road, pays us a visit for water. The Waxies' go into megga panic, and take off post haste. I wonder why, considering, during the summer, they are insectiverous.

Regards

Malky

Leif · Sep 30, 2004

IanF said:
Bee-eater don't seem to be overly bothered, though the ones we had up our way last year seemed to sometimes be knocking or flicking the bees/wasps whatever against the telegraph wires before consuming them. I did wonder whether it was to stun them or perhaps get rid of the sting after squeezing it out with their bills ?

I read somewhere that they they bash them about to get rid of the sting.

Merop · Oct 24, 2004

Bee-eaters do stun large insects by bashing them against their perch, if it has a stinger it rubs this to express the venom, if it has no stinger it simply swallows it whole they seem to know the difference.

As a point if they were to eat a stinger that was not stunned or dead, in their mouth there are large muscular areas that squeeze the insect to release it's body juices and after that the bird expels the carcass as a pellet these areas are very tough and I doubt if a stinger would affect them.

Andrew Rowlands · Oct 24, 2004

I recall a time, some years ago, when I was helping at a CES ringing site, we found a dead Wren; as we were removing it from the net it we discovered a new wasp nest only a foot or so away. After some discussion we decided that a wasp sting was likely to have been the cause of death. It still saddens me to think of it....

Andy.

pete woodall · Oct 26, 2004

As a youngster I studied Bronze Mannikins in Zimbabwe. They almost always
nested in proximity to paper wasp nests. It was too frequent to be a coincidence
and I'm sure the wasps gave them protection from predators.

We should also make some mention of the Honeyguides that lead people and
Honey Badgers (ratels) to honey bee hives. Legend has it that if the people
don't leave some of the comb for the bird, next time the honeyguide will lead
them to a predator like a lion.

Pete

Masculonius · Oct 28, 2004

As a house painter, I spend my summers painting house parts that can be accessed only with wings or ladders and I encounter many kinds of wasps.
They fly around a lot when you approach their nests.
They get real close to you. I don't think they see too well. Maybe they are trying to touch you with their antennae.
They need more input.
I think this because it seems that they exert a lot of energy trying to see if you are a threat. If I move away from them, they are cool with that. I mean, if they are right in front of my face, I move my head back a bit, or duck my head. Sometimes I retreat a few steps. I can come back and they do not sting me.
I try to be the hummingbird when I am around wasps.
They will fly up to a feeder, get buzzed by a wasp and back off and keep coming back as long as there is a chance but if the wasp is aggressive, it waits in a tree for a few minutes and the wasp goes away.
I think birds can live with wasps and there can be accidents and miscommunications between them and birds get stung.
Surely.
I've been stung before. I'd hate to be a bird! Yeowch!

tomjenner · Oct 28, 2004

pete woodall said:
As a youngster I studied Bronze Mannikins in Zimbabwe. They almost always
nested in proximity to paper wasp nests. It was too frequent to be a coincidence
and I'm sure the wasps gave them protection from predators.

I'm don't know about wasps nests, but Rufous-naped Wrens in Central America usually build their nests in Acacias which, as many of you probably know, have large thorns that are designed to hold ant nests as part of a symbiotic relationship. For their part, the ants protect the Acacia against attack. It has been shown that the wrens select the Acacias that have ants with the fiercest sting. This will then disuade predators from attacking the nest. Either the ant stings do not harm the wrens, or they do not attack them in some other symbiotic relationship.
Tom

KnockerNorton · Oct 28, 2004

There's 7 letters in this Autumn's BTO Ringer's Guide from ringers who have had birds die from wasp and bee stings in their nets. Some are killed by one (e.g. on the eye, causing swelling), others are killed by multiple stings and some were being cut up and taken away in wasp-sized chunks!

Andy Bright · Oct 28, 2004

Offord said:
There's 7 letters in this Autumn's BTO Ringer's Guide from ringers who have had birds die from wasp and bee stings in their nets. Some are killed by one (e.g. on the eye, causing swelling), others are killed by multiple stings and some were being cut up and taken away in wasp-sized chunks!

Hi Offord, welcome to birdforum from the staff here.

Most interesting and I wonder if ringers would be able to take any precautions against the netted birds being 'easy meat'. Maybe a topic for the ringing/banding forum on here?
Cheers,
Andy

KnockerNorton · Oct 28, 2004

Andy Bright said:
Hi Offord, welcome to birdforum from the staff here.

Most interesting and I wonder if ringers would be able to take any precautions against the netted birds being 'easy meat'. Maybe a topic for the ringing/banding forum on here?
Cheers,
Andy

Cheers Andy,

Well, all Uk ringers will have the bulletin already, but, for non-ringers, one of the letters mentioned that there may be an issue with sting pheromones remaining on the net and attracting future attacks. You can imagine that you get a bee flying into the next and getting tangled, then maybe stinging, and then next time the net gets put out it attracts more bees looking for something to attack. On the other hand though, the evidence does suggest that attacks can also come out of the blue. Insect repellents and vigilance were the only offers of a solution.

Andy Bright · Oct 28, 2004

Offord said:
Cheers Andy,

You can imagine that you get a bee flying into the next and getting tangled, then maybe stinging, and then next time the net gets put out it attracts more bees looking for something to attack.

That does sound the most plausible reason for unprovoked attacks. I know CO2 has been blamed in the past for attacks on humans but it's hard to imagine much being released by something like a leaf warbler.
cheers,
Andy

Do Birds get stung by Wasps? (2 Viewers)

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