Do Birds Eat Bees?

Given that bees have venomous stingers, it might be surprising that any bird would prefer these as part of its diet. So let’s get started, what kind of bird eats bees?

There are many different types of birds that do eat bees – some are expert bee predators, others are opportunists. Species such as bee-eaters, summer tanagers, and scarlet tanagers, for example, will make them a large part of their diet. In contrast, other species such as honey buzzards or purple martins only occasionally eat them as larvae or adults.

There are many more different types of birds that eat bees, which we detail below.

Scarlet tanager eating a bee

How do birds catch bees?

Another reason not many birds have bees as part of their diet is the skill required to catch the bees in the first place. Bees rarely fly in a straight line, and they do so very quickly. So, not only do birds need to be agile enough, but they also need the ability to judge the angle and speed needed to allow them to catch a bee.

Most bee-eaters use the same method when catching bees. They either glide and grab the bees during their flight, or they swoop down to grab them from the branches. Once caught, they slam the bee’s head against a surface with their long, curved proboscis, then remove the stinger and toxins before eating the bee.

European bee-eater with bees

The ultimate consumer of bees: the bee-eater

There are 22 different species of bee-eaters in the Bee-eater family, which are the ultimate consumers of bees. A large number of these birds live in Africa, but probably the most famous is the European bee-eater.

Most bee-eaters are gregarious, brightly colored, and very loud. They build their nests by digging holes in the ground to provide a safe and secure place for their eggs. As mentioned earlier, they use their long, curved proboscis to catch, kill and eat bees.

Red Bearded Bee-eater

Honey Buzzard

If you happen to live in the UK, you’ve probably seen (or known about) bees. These large birds of prey spend the summer in the UK before migrating to Africa for the winter. They are taupe in color with a long tail and long wingspan.

Honey buzzards follow the adult bees back to the hive, where they use their powerful claws to open the hive. Once they do, they eat bee and wasp larvae — which they prefer to eat larvae rather than adult bees and wasps.

So you’re probably thinking, how do they do it without getting stung by all the angry bees? Well, honey hawks have specialized feathers on their face and neck that serve as a sort of armor against bee and wasp stings.

bees eat bees

other birds that sometimes eat bees

Birds are mostly omnivores, which means they eat plants, animals and insects. In addition to the birds listed above, many other species occasionally eat bees, such as northern cardinals, orioles, swifts, thrushes, woodpeckers, and mockingbirds. Woodpeckers can pick out a hive and then eat the bees at every opportunity.

However, these birds prefer to eat slower-moving insects such as worms, caterpillars, and spiders because it requires less skill than catching fast-moving bees.

A black-headed oriole waits patiently to catch a bee

Are bees threatened by birds?

Predatory birds do not pose an immediate threat to bee populations because the birds and bees have coexisted for many years. When you compare the impact of birds on populations with that of other predators such as bears, foxes, shrews, badgers and rodents, their impact is minimal. Not only do these other predators eat the bees, but they often destroy the hive and gobble up the honey.

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