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Subject: Orange County, NC Beekeepers

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  • From: Tom Wright <twright AT vicksburg.com>
  • To: Jeff Bollinger <jeff01 AT email.unc.edu>
  • Cc: Lewis Cauble <Lewis AT hivebody.com>, NC Beekeepers Orange County <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [ocba] Mean Bees
  • Date: Wed, 29 Apr 2009 10:00:56 -0400

Pardon me, but you probably don't smell good, at least not to bees! Wash your clothes and your body with ivory soap. No body wash or scented soap. No deodorant, perfume, cologne or hair spray. Smoke yourself a little with the smoker. Use pine straw if you can. Put a little wad of green grass in the smoker nozzle to cool the smoke. I assume your stretch pants are synthetic. Bees don't like that, either. Go with all white cotton, including socks.

You're correct about the weather. They really get surly in storms or when the temp and humidity are high. Try and work in mid-day when there is no wind and the bees are busy.

Try not to squash any bees. When squashed or when they sting, they release an alarm pheromone known as "shreckstoff" or fright substance.

If the pitch of the hive goes from a modest hum to a high-pitched whine, it's time to close up and back off.

Requeening with a gentler queen will work if the queen is the problem but you may be inadvertently inciting them to riot. Remember that there should be a nectar flow when you requeen to maximize acceptance.

On the rare chance that AHB's may have arrived and they will eventually you need to check with an apiary inspector. Strangely, aggressive bees are often the best producers. Beekeeping should be fun, not agony!

Good luck,

Tom

Jeff Bollinger wrote:
My bees have a reputation for being "mean", but there are so many
factors to account for their "attitude". Weather is probably the
biggest. I once went out in full suit right before a big
electrical/thunderstorm and they lit me up all over my ankles! I think
they can feel the static in the air and sense instability in the atmosphere.

I have also been out when it was really cloudy/overcast and experienced
the same thing.

Other thing is smoke - I learned (after last year's excellent field day)
that I was WAY oversmoking the bees. Be sure you're not filling the
hive with smoke - just a little every now and then is enough to keep
them calm-ish. Too much and they will get angry.

Its also a good thing NOT to stand in front of the hive entrance unless
there's a really good reason. I stand to the side or behind the hives
when putting on feed or working inside the hive.

If you're just putting on a feeder like a boardman/front feeder, you can
do it quickly and not worry about getting stung unless you're making a
big racket. For the internal style feeders, if you have to pull off the
cover and start moving things around there's definitely a higher chance
of getting stung. This is just one of the many reasons I exclusively
use the front feeders (then again I have never had more than 3 hives at
once).

Jeff


Lewis Cauble wrote:
Mary Lou,
It's hard to say from here if your bees are overly aggressive. It might be helpful if you could tell us what type of feeder you are using, where the bees came from, how large the hive is, and when the hive was established.

It's no fun dealing with aggressive bees. Simply re-queening with a gentle queen should adjust the attitude of the hive.

Lewis


On Apr 27, 2009, at 9:24 PM, Mary Lou Bethune wrote:

I am new to owing a hive and I am wondering if it is normal to get stung
every( and several) time one goes to feed the bees? WE have the hood and
gloves and cover up totally but still get stung( we just learned that they
can sting through stretch pants).
Thanks
Mary Lou Bethune


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