Birdbath for Bees - Is it safe to add Pennies?

Beekeeping - Basics
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Hello All,

I have a birdbath for the bees, which gets a fair amount of bee visits in these hot months.

I’ve heard that adding a few old pennies can greatly reduce algae growth, and also discourage mosquitoes. Has anyone tried this? Is copper toxic to honeybees?

(I would use pre-1982 pennies only, as they contain 95% copper. Newer pennies are 95% zinc which is supposedly toxic to birds, and won’t stop algae.)

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Don’t overthink it. My bees just go to a normal birdbath and I empty and refill it weekly. Both birds and bees use it without problems and algae is not a problem.

Rob.

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I understand, thank you. I really appreciate the response. :slightly_smiling_face: