Bees in East Berkshire, Pigeons in West Berkshire
In Pests
It is springtime in Berkshire, and PestUK are dealing with Bees in East Berkshire, Pigeons in West Berkshire Spring is a much busier time for insect pests than winter. We have started to get jobs of bees throughout Berkshire and North Hampshire. April is the first month of the calendar year where this starts to occur usually. I (Rick Pellen) always make sure that I have a few boxes ready for the removal of honey bees, which usually start to wake up/ move from their hives in the spring and early summer. Many pest control companies are not experienced or capable of moving bee swarms, however I was taught to do it several years ago, and always ensure that I have some spare cardboard boxes and some honey/food for the bees in my van at this time of year, and can move them to a suitable location. I can also move bumble bees, but this is usually unsuccessful, as they do not have such large nests and cannot survive being moved. If a bumble bee nest is in a location where it is causing a hazard (such as in a school) it is best to have it treated, as usually it will not be a native species anyway. Our native bees nest in the ground, whereas the bumble bees we get in buildings in Berkshire are usually tree bees which are not native to this country.
Image above shows my bee catching box!
Mike Cooke and I recently completed some bird proofing on a building in Newbury in West Berkshire which has been plagued for many years with pigeon feces. I personally really enjoy carrying out this type of work, and I think the people who live in the flats will appreciate what we have done to fix their problem for a long time to come!
Bird netting or spikes is often the only solution to long term pigeon problems. As you can see in the images below, it was a very hot day in Newbury, so I had to wear a vest under my over-alls due to the temperature. At PEST UK we always wear appropriate PPE such as respirators and overalls when working with dangerous chemicals or feces.
Rick Pellen and Mike Cooke (Both FT Technicians at PestUK) Installing Bird Proofing Spikes
