As a homeowner, you’ve tried multiple techniques to rid your property of bees, wasps, and hornets. You’ve made traps, you’ve sealed gaps in your home, and you’ve burned more citronella candles than you can count. But every year, they come back in full force, building nests in the trees, under the eaves, and behind the shed.

Fortunately, you don’t have to fight off the flying insects on your own. Though you might not always see them, you have allies on your side, just waiting to snatch up bees and wasps whenever they see the opportunity. The following predators, for example, eat bees, wasps, and hornets on a regular basis.

1. Robber Fly

Robber flies, or assassin flies, love to eat their meals on the go. They cling to low-hanging branches, then swoop down and ambush their prey. And their spiny, barbed legs enable them to catch other insects in mid-flight.

Once robber flies catch their meal, they inject their victim with paralyzing enzymes. These enzymes liquefy the victim’s insides, and the fly can suck out the juices like soda through a straw.

Although robber flies will take almost any insect they can catch, they often munch on bees, wasps, dragonflies, and butterflies.

Tips to Attract Them to Your Yard

Plant composite flowers such as chamomile, daisy, and mint throughout the growing season.

2. Crab Spider

Crab spiders are a general term for multiple spider species that move and look somewhat like crabs. Arizona boasts several crab spider species, including the bark crab, the black tail crab, the giant crab, the goldenrod crab, the ground crab, and the metallic crab.

All crab spider species are active hunters, so they don’t spin webs to catch other insects. Many crab spiders camouflage with flower petals, and when bees or flies come to feed on the nectar, the spiders pounce and grab with their powerful front legs. Next, the spiders paralyze their prey with fast-acting venom, and they immediately begin to feed.

Tips to Attract Them to Your Yard

Like most other spiders, crab spiders prefer a diversified garden. Plant a mix of perennial herbs and lush bushes to create the ideal spider habitat.

3. Red-Spotted Toad

As their name implies, red-spotted toads have eye-catching red spots (or warts) along their brown-colored backs. They spend most of their day hiding under rocks, and only come out at dusk to eat or breed.

These toads are opportunistic feeders, so they’ll consume almost any bug that comes their way. Toads have long, sticky tongues that let them catch and trap ants, beetles, bees, and spiders. And because toads have no teeth, they have to swallow their prey whole. If the food is too large to swallow, the toad will hold the insect in its mouth and ingest it gradually.

Tips to Attract Them to Your Yard

Toads need safe, cool places to hide during the day, so buy (or make) a toad abode and place it near a water feature.

4. Common Lesser Earless Lizard

The common lesser earless lizard comes with a variety of gray, tan, and orange-brown markings. They tend to live in the northern section of the Arizona strip, and they remain most active during midmornings and late afternoons.

Though they rarely grow larger than three inches, these lizards actively hunt feisty, juicy insects such as bees, wasps, butterflies, and grasshoppers. They have strong jaws and teeth that allow them to tear into their prey.

Tips to Attract Them to Your Yard

Most lizard species prefer plenty of ground cover to shelter them from the elements and other potential predators, so plant creeping vines around your garden. If possible, construct a stone wall with plenty of nooks and crannies to shield lizards from local cats.

5. Black-Vented and Streaked-Back Orioles

Orioles have stunning orange, yellow, and black plumage and long, down-curved bills. Though these birds tend to live in the tropical dry forests of Central America, they do migrate to Arizona during March and April months.

These birds prefer to eat sweeter meals consisting of nectar, jelly, and orange halves. But they also eat a variety of insects such as spiders, caterpillars, bees, and beetles.

Tips to Attract Them to Your Yard

You can purchase specialized oriole feeders that provide these beautiful birds with a well-balanced diet. Nectar feeders often have large ports to accommodate oriole bills and convenient perches for the birds to rest.

Not Enough Predators in Your Area?

Although Mother Nature gifted the above creatures with a powerful appetite for wasps and bees, your area might not be hospitable to some of them. And if your neighborhood doesn’t accommodate enough of these predators, you might see consistent swarms of bees return every year.
If you have any questions please contact ASAP Bee Removal with any bee related problems.