Beekeeping

[jamurfjr]

I heard from a honey bee research facility's online webpage from a nearby, highly esteemed college, that the smalle hive beetle has made an appearance in the NW. Guys, I'm scared. :helpsmilie: :shifty:

I had a scare when I was switching the honey bees into the big hive... I saw a handful, maybe 6?, small beetles running around. Looking at pictures of small hive beetles, I'm not sure if what I'm seeing are shb. These bees were down in California pollinating though, so.... We'll see. Wish my bees health, as I do for your current and future ones!

Best wishes to your bees...

The guys here look at the shb as part of beekeeping. Every hive has them, and you'll never be completely rid of them. However, they can be controlled. Aside from colony strength, traps are available. I've also heard of treating the ground around the hive to kill larva, but I'm with Rick on that one. Chemicals and pesticides are a treatment of last resort.

 

[Rick]

As I mentioned a healthy colony can keep the beetles in check. Once you see them you will know, small black beetles.

 

[ScienceGirl]

They are small, and black. Very small... Very, vert, very small... I saw a picture of a small hive beetles compared to a penny. The length of the beetle was about the width of the top of Abraham Lincoln's head. These beetles are the size of... this o. I have seen some inside the hive, and captured some in a ziplock bag yesterday from outside of the hive.

 

[ScienceGirl]

I posted some pictures of the nucleus. These were from March.

 

[Rick]

Mine seem bigger than that for sure. Not much, but definitely larger than the o. I removed my external feeder yesterday and there were several beetles under it and they went scattering at the disturbance. Need to get into my hive for a good look I think.

 

[ScienceGirl]

Would you be able to post a picture of yours on white paper compared to a penny? I'll do the same with mine.

 

[jamurfjr]

The smb shown to me in class was larger than what you describe, ScienceGirl. Wikipedia claims one-half centimeter in length.

Quick thinking on the improvised water source. We have been discussing the issue and will probably set up a bird bath exclusively for bees—sorry no birds allowed.

 

[Rick]

Would you be able to post a picture of yours on white paper compared to a penny? I'll do the same with mine.

I can but not sure when I'll be able to. I'll try to get into the hive this week sometime.

 

[ScienceGirl]

The smb shown to me in class was larger than what you describe, ScienceGirl. Wikipedia claims one-half centimeter in length.

Quick thinking on the improvised water source. We have been discussing the issue and will probably set up a bird bath exclusively for bees—sorry no birds allowed.

Haha, thank you. We're going to buy a couple chicken waterers/feeders and fill the base with pebbles. A hive can need as much as 1 liter of water on a hot day, so we want to make sure they'll have enough if we go anywhere for a week or so.

I can but not sure when I'll be able to. I'll try to get into the hive this week sometime.

All right, and thank you. My bag with the beetles in it must have been thrown away while cleaning... I'm going up to the hives today to make sure the Carniolan colony is queen-right. It was only a permittable day when I moved them into their big hive, so I had to get the brood frames into the box quickly. No inspection time.

 

[ScienceGirl]

So, they're probably not hive beetles.

I have a bigger problem now.

I was examining the frames :detective: to make sure the colony was queen-right. I didn't remember seeing any larva when quickly rehousing them from their nucleus, but it may have just been the lighting. Well, this time I didn't see a queen, and examined almost every frame. I was right in the center frames when I glanced upon . . . supersedure cells. :huh: :no:

Time for a call to my beekeeper contact. <_<

Supersedure cells are built around existing larva or eggs, and the selected brood are turned over to the diet of a queen larva. They new virgin queens are carefully raised to replace the old queen, because the workers felt she was failing, not performing up to their standards, or because she got damaged in some way or killed.

EDIT: Called my beekeeping mentor. We're going to receive another nucleus with a laying queen from him. These bees, brood frames, and queen will be added to the current hive. Any roaming virgin queens will be killed and supersedure cells will be removed.

 

[jamurfjr]

So, they're probably not hive beetles.

I have a bigger problem now.

I was examining the frames :detective: to make sure the colony was queen-right. I didn't remember seeing any larva when quickly rehousing them from their nucleus, but it may have just been the lighting. Well, this time I didn't see a queen, and examined almost every frame. I was right in the center frames when I glanced upon . . . supersedure cells. :huh: :no:

Time for a call to my beekeeper contact. <_<

Supersedure cells are built around existing larva or eggs, and the selected brood are turned over to the diet of a queen larva. They new virgin queens are carefully raised to replace the old queen, because the workers felt she was failing, not performing up to their standards, or because she got damaged in some way or killed.

EDIT: Called my beekeeping mentor. We're going to receive another nucleus with a laying queen from him. These bees, brood frames, and queen will be added to the current hive. Any roaming virgin queens will be killed and supersedure cells will be removed.

Sounds like you've got that taken care of. Good job!

My first inclination would have been to allow the supersedure to take place. Your population growth would take a hit until the new queen is laying, but the colony should bounce back, right? Perhaps not with a nuc? Newbie question here; please correct if I'm wrong. I do understand strengthening the hive through combination and why you would want a laying queen sooner than later.

 

[ScienceGirl]

Sounds like you've got that taken care of. Good job!

My first inclination would have been to allow the supersedure to take place. Your population growth would take a hit until the new queen is laying, but the colony should bounce back, right? Perhaps not with a nuc? Newbie question here; please correct if I'm wrong. I do understand strengthening the hive through combination and why you would want a laying queen sooner than later.

Haha, thank you.

Well, firstly, supersedure is natural. Another name for supersedure cells is emergency queen cells, but they are kind of different. Supersedure happens to replace the current queen; emergency queen cells are built to replace a nonexistant queen. If the current queen was killed, wasn't performing well enough, wasn't producing enough pheromones, was injured, or for any reason was felt faulting and isn't dead already, the workers may let her live while they raise new queens, or they may kill her and continue raising new queens.

Supersedure cells are on the top 2/3 of the comb, built over an already present cell.

Firstly, if it is an emergency queen cell, the workers' first choice is to built a queen cell around an egg. If there are no eggs present, they will build around whatever youngest larva stage they can get. So this larva may not be prepped for success. Remember, the longer the larva has been eating a queen diet, the better the outcome and the healthier (normally) the virgin queen will be.

Once a virgin queen emerges, the next step is mating. If you are in an area with not many hives, there will not be many drones, and you don't know the temperment of these drone mother colonies. If the queen doesn't mate with enough drones, she will not have much sperm to fertilize eggs with. If you live in an area with africanized bees, than this can be major trouble. If the weather is not nice enough, the virgin queen may not be able to take her mating flight, and she only has a limited window to mate in. Once you've got a virgin queen that's missed her window and is in charge of a colony, you've got trouble; she can only lay drones, and no more queens can be raised from these. The hive will collapse unless the virgin queen is killed and the hive is requeened by a beekeeper.

Queen producers have queen mother colonies and drone mother colonies that they test for certain traits, such as hygene, gentleness, honey production, propolis production, egg laying rate, etc. They stock the area with preferable drone mother colonies and provide DCA's (drone congregation areas). They often put virgin queens into queen banks or mating nucs, which allow more virgin queens to mate in a smaller area because these types of hives are very small.

 

[jamurfjr]

I see. So you are taking some chances: 1) later stage larva fed royal jelly results/could result in an inferior queen, 2) a possibility of drone scarcity, and 3) many other variables. Learn something new everyday. Thanks for the explanation!

 

[ScienceGirl]

I see. So you are taking some chances: 1) later stage larva fed royal jelly results/could result in an inferior queen, 2) a possibility of drone scarcity, and 3) many other variables. Learn something new everyday. Thanks for the explanation!

Haha, yep. You've got it! With honey bees, things can turn out multiple ways. For me, supersedure cells were built. Well, that's what keeps us thinking ahead, I guess!

 

[ScienceGirl]

Today we combined the queenless colony with the queen-right nucleus colony. They should combine peacefully at this point in the year, but the colonies would kill each other if combining was attempted in mid and late summer.

Steps:

1. Lightly smoke and open the full sized queenless hive. Go through, frame by frame, looking for supersedure cells. Pierce them with a toothpick and kill the pupa inside. Set each frame into another hive box resting on the ground. (This box will become the second story.) When finished, your bottom hive body will be empty and should be sitting on the bottom board with or without a hive stand. Take a moment to clean the inside of the box, the frame rests, and the bottom board with your hive tool.
2. Place your queen-right nucleus Lightly smoke and open the queen-right nucleus hive. Carefully remove each frame, placing it in the center of the empty hive box, with brood frames in the very center. A queen would most likely be found on a frame with young brood and eggs, not capped cells or just honey and nectar. When finished, place extra frames with drawn comb or foundation on the sides of the nucleus' frames.
3. Feed, if desired. Close the hive and place the hive cover(s) on top.
4. Lean the nucleus box and the nucleus cover against the hive entrance so remaining bees can enter the hive.
5. You are finished! Sit back with a glass of iced tea and watch your bees lap up nectar and honey inside the nucleus. The bees inside the hive will also drag out the dead virgin queen pupas.

 

[jamurfjr]

Today we combined the queenless colony with the queen-right nucleus colony. They should combine peacefully at this point in the year, but the colonies would kill each other if combining was attempted in mid and late summer.

Steps:

1. Lightly smoke and open the full sized queenless hive. Go through, frame by frame, looking for supersedure cells. Pierce them with a toothpick and kill the pupa inside. Set each frame into another hive box resting on the ground. (This box will become the second story.) When finished, your bottom hive body will be empty and should be sitting on the bottom board with or without a hive stand. Take a moment to clean the inside of the box, the frame rests, and the bottom board with your hive tool.
2. Place your queen-right nucleus Lightly smoke and open the queen-right nucleus hive. Carefully remove each frame, placing it in the center of the empty hive box, with brood frames in the very center. A queen would most likely be found on a frame with young brood and eggs, not capped cells or just honey and nectar. When finished, place extra frames with drawn comb or foundation on the sides of the nucleus' frames.
3. Feed, if desired. Close the hive and place the hive cover(s) on top.
4. Lean the nucleus box and the nucleus cover against the hive entrance so remaining bees can enter the hive.
5. You are finished! Sit back with a glass of iced tea and watch your bees lap up nectar and honey inside the nucleus. The bees inside the hive will also drag out the dead virgin queen pupas.

Nice write-up! I'm sure I'll be back to consult it in the future.

Also...

Bees. Tomorrow. Anticipation.

 

[jamurfjr]

I only received one of two packages today, but I'm now in business! Installed with zero stings! unk:

The only downer was a glimpse of a small hive beetle. When I went back to clean off the landing board, it scurried inside the hive. THEY are here so soon! Must have hitched a ride with the bees. Oh well, I'm not going to sweat it.

 

[Rick]

Congrats on getting at least one of your packages! And you hived it in a t shirt haha. The first time I did it with a friend we hived several hives and he got stung a few times. But generally they are not defensive since they don't have a home. Is that what you're using for a feeder? I would rethink that since it is open to every other insect that likes nectar. My friend had ten hives on his property and used a communal feeder and he lost every one of his hives to what we think was attributed to his feeding style. Somewhat different situation but something to watch out for.

Looking forward to updates.

 

[jamurfjr]

Congrats on getting at least one of your packages! And you hived it in a t shirt haha. The first time I did it with a friend we hived several hives and he got stung a few times. But generally they are not defensive since they don't have a home. Is that what you're using for a feeder? I would rethink that since it is open to every other insect that likes nectar. My friend had ten hives on his property and used a communal feeder and he lost every one of his hives to what we think was attributed to his feeding style. Somewhat different situation but something to watch out for.

Looking forward to updates.

Thanks!

I was apprehensive at first—with all the buzzing! I had never even seen it done in person. It was just one of those 'let's get it done' moments, but boy was I sweating bullets! I can assure you of this: the process was not pretty. Despite the warnings in class, I even dropped the queen cage into the mass of workers! Nerves gradually subsided. I became amazed at how easy the bees were to work with. All in all...a very positive initial experience.

I'm temporarily feeding with a punctured can under the telescoping cover. As of now, there should be good nectar flow; so it won't be for long...giving the bees a chance to get situated. I'm using the chick water dispenser as an improvised water source. That too will be taken up in time.

 

[ScienceGirl]

Thanks!

I was apprehensive at first—with all the buzzing! I had never even seen it done in person. It was just one of those 'let's get it done' moments, but boy was I sweating bullets! I can assure you of this: the process was not pretty. Despite the warnings in class, I even dropped the queen cage into the mass of workers! Nerves gradually subsided. I became amazed at how easy the bees were to work with. All in all...a very positive initial experience.

I'm temporarily feeding with a punctured can under the telescoping cover. As of now, there should be good nectar flow; so it won't be for long...giving the bees a chance to get situated. I'm using the chick water dispenser as an improvised water source. That too will be taken up in time.

If you want a feeding source that will lay flat, try pouring sugar syrup into a plastic ziplock bag. Cut an X into it, or slits, which ever you prefer. Place this on top of the frames or inner cover and close the hive.