Paging the Bee Keepers?

Umm strange thing, we appear to have a bee's nest 6 feet from our patio
window in a bird nest box that we haven't noticed being used for the
last 4 years!

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d33/Donegal_Paul/bitsandbobs/IMG_4073.jpg

Not that I'm bothered about the bees, would love to have a proper hive
really but just wondered if there's something we should (or shouldn't
do) The box is only 6 x 4 x 4 inches so I don't think there's gonna be
many of them unless they "extend"?

 

They'll probably swarm when they run out of space.

 

They'll probably swarm when they run out of space.


If want to look for it there's stuff on the internet about how to create a
suitable underground site that they might prefer when they need more space -
obviously then you can chose the site most convenient for both interested
parties.

 

While we wait for someone who actually knows to come along, I'll just opine
that they don't look like domestic honey bees. If they're a different
species, then assumptions about hive size and behaviour may be moot.

 

But that just means that they'll go off and build another hive Im
guessing?
The nest box is quite small I would have thought, to the point where I
would have thought it a mad place to have a hive but there you go, Im
not a bee

I've done some googling and it makes interesting reading, looking more
and more at it, it would appear these aren't like "normal" honey making
bees and have a short hive life cycle and it looks like its best to
leave them be (no pun intended)

 

Yep, I don't think these are anything like honey bees, I just thought
until I googled that all bees were pretty much similar

 

Its the Tree Bumblebee - Bombus Hypnorum. "First recorded in the UK in 2001
in Hampshire. Now found infrequently in southern England as far north as
Hertfordshire. Not yet widely established. It is easy to recognise as it has
a ginger thorax and a black abdomen with white tip. It has been most
commonly found in gardens, and often nests in bird nest boxes."

 

That'll be that then just found the following after going out for
another look too.
http://www.bwars.com/bombus_hypnorum_map.htm

I can see one at the entrance to the hive which I thought at first was
buzzing away as I was looking at the nest but I wasnt close enough to
be a threat but on reading it looks like its on ventilation duty as
there's only that small entrance to the hive and hence the air needs
circulating, I guess they'll be taking turns at that one then!

 

Bloody foreigners, coming over here and stealing our bird boxes!

 

Its not the first time the topic of bee's has come up here, someone posted a
link to a site with instructions how to build an underground haven that
scout bee's will find and colonise.

Most of the time, colonies die out in winter, but if they're well sheltered
they can keep going many years.

There's been one under my shed for about a decade, a few years back there
was conflict as the entrance was right next to the shed door, so the bee's
didn't like me working so close to their entrance, and sometimes got a bit
agressive.

The solution was to wait till autumn and seal the edge of the shed to the
concrete back yard with expanding foam, the following spring the bee's dug a
new entrance round the side of the shed where no one ever goes.