Today’s tip came from a sight earlier in the week – I was walking along the path when I spotted a bee on the pavement in front of me. This tends to be a common sight, but up to now I didn’t understand why (or if there was anything we can do to actually help).

I did some research (well, I googled the question), and found an interesting article on the RSPB website, which explains that the bees can get exhausted as they fly around collecting pollen, and end up lying on the ground to rest. Of course this then means they’re at risk of being trodden on, so we can help them by supplying a small amount of sugar water to given them enough energy to fly away again.

The RSPB sugar water ‘recipe’ is to mix two tablespoons of white granulated sugar into one tablespoon of water. They recommend placing this in a small container (to avoid the risk of birds bathing in it) amongst the flowers that the bees are attracted to.

I found a bee on the front doorstep, lying on the ground obviously resting, so I added some sugar water to a milk carton lid (it was the only shallow container I could find!) next to the bee. To our amazement, we had a really clear view of the bee drinking the water, and after a few minutes it had enough strength to fly away.

My dad didn’t see the bee fly off, and started checking the ground to make sure it wasn’t still there!

Unfortunately we aren’t able to add a small container near the flowers, as I’m a bit concerned that the birds would end up drinking it (or the badgers would just barge through and tip it all out), but we’re keeping an eye out for any more exhausted bees that we can help!

#30dayswild