Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum
BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: rusty on February 02, 2006, 08:14:13 am
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Hi Friends,
I am very woried about the possibilty of SHB infecting my hives. What is the situation at present, (last I heard it was in Portugal). How are we going to deal with this thing, as I understand it, it is pretty indestructable. As if Varroa wasn't bad enough!.
Rusty
PS I submitted this into the Greetings Page by mistake. AIN'T THAT JUST LIKE RUSTY!!
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PS I submitted this into the Greetings Page by mistake. AIN'T THAT JUST LIKE RUSTY!!
I deleted the post in the greetings section for you :-)
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Thank you!!
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I don't think you have Small Hive Beetle in the UK do you?
Most people in most places in Northern climates don't find them that devestating, just a nuisance like wax moths are.
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I have found that wax moths are pretty devastating to hives if the hive is weak and/or you give the bees too much room.
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I believe before its over, the SHB will be like varroa, Everywhere!!!!! it just a matter of time......
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I heard it is in Georgia and Florida. That is why I only get my bees from cali.
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you way behind horn, most every state has them now, i have heard they were in california 4-5 years ago, just had this topic in beesource,,, read this
http://www.beesource.com/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=3;t=000624
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Florida bee keeper here.
We definitely have SHBs here in Florida. They just got done decimating my hive. A weak hive will be destroyed by them. Here is what I was able to observe. The SHB lays eggs in the hive, the SHB lavare grows and eats through the comb. I have witnesses this. I literally froze a section of comb with the lavare in it so I could take a better look at it.
The best defense against them is a strong hive, but right now it seems to be there are always going some SHBs in the hive. The idea is to keep them to a minimum.
Sincerely,
Brendhan
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Understud, how are your captured bees doing?
Haven't seen you around here for sometime.
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Understudy, how are your captured bees doing?
Haven't seen you around here for sometime.
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Hi Jack,
I have been reading posts just not making a lot of them. I didn't want to become a chronic, not only that I am suppose to have a life. However I have been keeping a small listing of items with the bees on my website.
You can read articles at :
http://www.understudy.net/page2.html
For the readers digest version of it. Let's say I am very effective at killing bees.
Sincerely,
Brendhan
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Read your tale of woe, Understudy.
Typical results. Some of the seemingly simple feral bee captures are very often not so. Having done a few I have resolved to not get involved except with the sure bets. And yes, bees in the wrong locations will usually be exterminated, but...
Since it seems that the AHB is established in FL there will no doubt be many feral bee exterminations. Have your new friends in the bee world had experience with the AHB's yet?
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Florida bee keeper here.
We definitely have SHBs here in Florida. They just got done decimating my hive. A weak hive will be destroyed by them.
Is it possible to get a nuc, package bees, swarms or what ever to put in new order your hive. I suppose that it is summer there are bees and flowers :? Orrrr, just wait and some African swarm comes in.
We have only -5C frost here and 15 cm snow.
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Yes, AHBs have been found in the county just north of me. It was great because I was doing the PR rounds with my neighbors discussing my new bees and the newspaper headlines that morning were all about the AHBs found in the next county.
The biggest problem on the SHBs for me was that because I let the hive get weak, the SHBs were able to get real strong. Also trying to find a replacement queen in Janurary isn't easy.
I have two hives now, picked up the second one yesterday. Cost me $200 but it came with 30,000 bees and one deep, and one medium. It also had a plastic queen excluder. It has a mesh bottom also. Mine all have board bottoms.
Now we are having the coldest weather of the year, 36 F / 2.2C for the next two days. My bees won't even come out. I don't blame them I want to stay in bed also.
Sincerely,
Brendhan
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I don't think you have Small Hive Beetle in the UK do you?
Most people in most places in Northern climates don't find them that devestating, just a nuisance like wax moths are.
According to the National Bee Unit we don't have SHB in the UK at present. This is the current advisory leaflet for your information.
http://www.csl.gov.uk/science/organ/environ/bee/diseases/documents/SHB_factsheet.pdf
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Thank you for posting that leaflet, very interesting and informative. You maybe think I am making a typcally female fuss about this little beast, but all that I have read is pretty ugly, and I don't want to find it in my hives. I really love my bees, and would hate to see them decimated by SHB. I hope there is some sort of method of controling them being sought. seems like we really need it.
Thank you once again
Rusty
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>You maybe think I am making a typcally female fuss about this little beast, but all that I have read is pretty ugly, and I don't want to find it in my hives.
Me neither. I hope they never get to the UK. Unfortunately they ARE here. So far I haven't seen any, but it's bound to happen sooner or later.
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Yes, AHBs have been found in the county just north of me. It was great because I was doing the PR rounds with my neighbors discussing my new bees and the newspaper headlines that morning were all about the AHBs found in the next county.
The biggest problem on the SHBs for me was that because I let the hive get weak, the SHBs were able to get real strong. Also trying to find a replacement queen in Janurary isn't easy.
I have two hives now, picked up the second one yesterday. Cost me $200 but it came with 30,000 bees and one deep, and one medium. It also had a plastic queen excluder. It has a mesh bottom also. Mine all have board bottoms.
Now we are having the coldest weather of the year, 36 F / 2.2C for the next two days. My bees won't even come out. I don't blame them I want to stay in bed also.
Sincerely,
Brendhan
Don't fret the temp. My bees were active yesterday. One of my hives had a coming out party yesterday. The coming out bees were doing their orientation dance. Quite pleasent to witness. The morning temp was 30 degrees F and the afternoon got to around 50 or so. The air was slightly chilly but the sky was blue and clear. I felt like dancing myself. 8)
Well you and your fellow beeks in FL will have to make some serious decisions about keeping bees in the near future due to this AHB INVASION. What are you, and, your fellow beeks contemplating?
It seems like ya'll will have to formulate some plan of action or the state will step in.
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Since I am relativley new to bee keeping I am not actually planning on doing a lot about the AHB issue. I am glad I have my hives. AHBs love to fill in a vaccumm. I figure my best bet is to make sure my hives stay healthy and my queens will probably get replaced only with queens from reputable dealers. I am more interested right now in finding an effective natural way to deal with SHBs. Maybe I should let my hedgehog eat them.
Sincerely,
Brendhan
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I am more interested right now in finding an effective natural way to deal with SHBs. Maybe I should let my hedgehog eat them.
Not wishing to deny your hedgehog a good feast, there must surely be some other way of killing SHB's in the hive. Resin seems to be an answer (if that's what the bees do) so what about some sort of sticky stuff that attracts them perhaps using one of their (dare I use the word on an open forum) "sexual" pheremones under a mesh floor that the bees can't reach, but the beetles can. Come on you clever scientists get your thinking hats on QUICK!
Ok so it's maybe a simplistic female view, but we really have to do something, and by the way what on earth are AHB's.
Rusty
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We have been researching control methods for SHB for 5 years now. We are also working with a German team who has been studying them since 97.
Firstly they do not stick to any known man made substance. They way resin works is that the bees completely entomb them in prisons. Unfortunately they can not do this to hundreds of beetles in a hive.
The pheromones do not work the way you describe. They are a long range chemical that attract them to an area. Within a hive all you will do is attract them all from outside and just confuse the ones inside.
Apart from this no research group has managed to isolate the aggregation pheromone for SHB successfully. Synthetic blends have proved unsuccessful in the feild.
The group at Gainesville have isolated a "yeast attractant" found in the slime they create in a hive. To my knowledge it is due tio be commercially available shortly. How successful it will be remains to be seen.
Unfortunately most treatments being researched are chemical (of course). They are effective until the SHB's become resistant not to mention the dangerous residues associated with these products.
The best control strategies at present are strong hives free from stress and disease.
Queenright hives (queenless hives are consumed quickly).
Lowering the humidity using vented bottoms and lids. Avoid overheating of hives.
Avoid working bees altogether during humid weather.
Do not feed in humid weather.
Do not leave pollen supplements in hives for more than a week at a time.
Treat soil around hives that have "slimed" larva pupates in soil around hive.
Oil traps work well when beetles are active. They are not designed to be on hives permenantly.
Beetles are afraid of light and generally either take off the frames or run straight to the floor. You can use this strategy to mass trap beetles.
Other projects we a working on include fungus and nematodes to treat larva in soil instead of insecticides. As well as beetle movement between apiaries and ferals, biology, and mechanisms that trigger the breakdown of colonies.
It's a disgusting pest that the world could do without!
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Thank you "down under"
That's interesting and I, all like minded beekeepers the world over wish you every luck. Your listed methods of at least keeping the brutes under some sort of control are gratefully received and will become my "Bible"
Thanks again and Good Luck.
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AHB = Africanized Honey Bees
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Oh! of course!! Silly me,
I thought there was yet another monstrous beetle on the loose.
Many Thanks Rusty!