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  • From: "birdcr AT concentric.net" <birdcr AT concentric.net>
  • To: annallys Goodwin-Landher <annallys AT hotmail.com>, Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com>, Erika Wittchen <erika48 AT gmail.com>, OCBA <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [ocba] small hive beetles (already!?) in newly installed package
  • Date: Wed, 7 May 2014 20:46:11 -0500 (CDT)

Folks,

Our bees are gone, been last fall since we had any. Anyway we cut
trees a few weeks ago. I made some stepping logs 20" x 3". I went
to move the stepping logs a week later and found about 20 Small
Hive beetles between the first stepping log and the second. Do
these beetles live without being inside a hive? Seems these
beetles might be adapting beyond bee hives.

Cheers,
Randy Emmitt



On Wed May 07 19:53:38 CDT 2014, annallys Goodwin-Landher
<annallys AT hotmail.com> wrote:

> Erika,
>
> I find that the screened top feeders allow SHB access to the
> syrup reservoir and the bees can't follow, so the hive beetles
> are free to lay eggs there, rather than being chased and cornered
> by the bees. I use a feeder similar to the one at this link
> http://www.brushymountainbeefarm.com/8-Frame-Hive-Top-Feeder-w_Floats/productinfo/262/
>
> It seems most beekeepers and local bee equipment suppliers sell
> the screened feeder because there's maintenance involved with the
> feeder with floaters and if the maintenance is neglected then
> bees drown. Before refilling an empty feeder with floats, take
> out the floaters and squash any hive beetles the bees have
> cornered. If bees are still in the reservoir then use long grass
> stalks to brush them out - bees get less agitated when using
> grass rather than nylon brushes. Important --- If bees
> propolized the floaters to the side of the feeder, scrape away
> the propolis, put syrup in feeder then add the floaters on top of
> the syrup. Do this each time the feeder goes dry and syrup's
> added. I find it much easier to let the reservoir go dry before
> adding more syrup. SHB will exploit any space a bee cannot get
> to, and the screened feeders make a perfect place for them lay
> eggs free of bee harassment. This is my 5th year using the feeder
> with floaters and by properly using the equipment there's been
> minimal bee deaths.
>
> My hives in the middle of a field receive a minimum of 8 hours of
> sun per day and get very few hive beetles. When I kept them in a
> place where there was only 4-5 hours of sun SHB were definitely a
> problem. Good luck.
> Warm Regards,
> Annallys 919 933-9109
> annallys AT hotmail.com
>
> Four years after the bees are gone, humanity is gone.
> Albert Einstein
>
>
> Date: Wed, 7 May 2014 12:35:14 -0400
> From: ra41717 AT gmail.com
> To: erika48 AT gmail.com; ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org
> Subject: Re: [ocba] small hive beetles (already!?) in newly
> installed package
>
>
> Erika,
>
> Small hive beetles are excellent fliers and have a
> keen sense of
> smell. They'll go long distances to find a nice home. Plus,
> they
> can travel in packages, unnoticed, along with the bees. So
> it
> isn't a surprise that you have seen them already.
>
> The key to keeping small hive beetles under control
> is the three
> S's: Sun, Space and Strength. Keep hives in sunny
> locations, don't
> provide more space than the bees can effectively police,
> and
> ensure that your hive population is healthy and strong
> (lots of
> bees). Weather seems to be the biggest factor with regard
> to how
> big a problem they are in general; when we have warm
> winters,
> there are lots of them the next year; cold winters and cool
> springs seem to result in fewer beetles. I haven't seen
> very many
> so far this year.
>
> Like wax moths, SHB don't kill healthy, strong
> colonies. They are
> opportunists which take advantage of weakness. Seeing a few
> beetles is expected and isn't anything to worry about at
> all as
> long as you understand the conditions that the beetles
> desire and
> then don't provide those conditions. For example, don't
> arrange
> frames, feeders etc. such that there are safe pockets in
> the hive
> that beetles can lay eggs in but the bees can't reach.
>
> Randall Austin On 5/7/2014 11:12
> AM, Erika Wittchen wrote:
>
> Hi all,
> I'm a brand new beekeeper who has been lurking on this
> list
> serve for some time, soaking up all the great info and
> insights you all provide. Now I am in need of some
> advice... A bit of background: I
> installed 2 packages of bees in 8
> frame mediums on April 19th. Both have laying queens
> (eggs
> and many stages of larva visible), good brood pattern,
> and 2
> full frames of capped brood already. I have noticed
> that Hive
> 2 has a much larger population, and I've wondered if
> this is
> possibly due to drift. I added a second medium to Hive
> 2 on
> the weekend because ~6 1/2 frames of the 8 are drawn
> out and
> in use. Both hives have been fed continuously with 1:1
> and
> Honey B Healthy in a hive top feeder.
> However, this morning I lifted the cover
> on Hive 1 to check
> the syrup level and saw a SHB scurry away. Then I
> noticed many
> small larva in the syrup! I will remove the feeder and
> clean
> out asap, but in the meantime I was wondering is it
> abnormal
> to already have SHB in a new hive (all new equipment,
> apiary
> site etc)? Any recommendations as to treatment would be
> appreciated!
> Thanks in advance,
> Erika
>
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