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Author Topic: Moving Hives Short Distance  (Read 9333 times)

Offline johnauck

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Moving Hives Short Distance
« on: November 30, 2013, 08:31:59 pm »

Last night I moved two hives about 100m. I followed advice to place tree branches at the entrance to make bees reorient.





However, when I let them out this morning, quite a few field bees drifted back to the old location.
I put an empty hive (frames and foundation) at the old location for now.
It looks like most of the drifted bees are from the green box (slightly weaker of the two hives).
But I not sure what to do next?
I was thinking of waiting until this evening and move the empty box with field bees and place it on top of one of the green hive?
Maybe I should move the green hive back to the old location for now? Then the bees that did manage to reorient will be without a home.






cheers

john

Offline yantabulla

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #1 on: December 01, 2013, 04:16:20 am »
John I tend to feel that the tree branch in front of the entrance is bad advice but what would I know?

Quite a few bees would equate to all of your field bees!

I would move one of them back to the original site.  Any strays will fly into it then move it to the new site the correct way e.g. a few feet at a time or move the a few km's away then back to the new site.

Good luck.

Yanta

Moots

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #2 on: December 01, 2013, 04:40:50 am »
John I tend to feel that the tree branch in front of the entrance is bad advice but what would I know?

Quite a few bees would equate to all of your field bees!

I would move one of them back to the original site.  Any strays will fly into it then move it to the new site the correct way e.g. a few feet at a time or move the a few km's away then back to the new site.

Good luck.

Yanta

John,
Not sure why you didn't have better luck...I've used the branch technique numerous times and have always had great success with it.  One time I had similar results to what you are describing, not really sure why that is.  However, I think the practice is pretty much accepted as a good approach.

While "technically" in may work, I have to question how realistic it is to achieve moving a hive a 100 Meters by moving it a couple of feet each day....ARE YOU KIDDING ME.  :?  It would take you nearly 2 months to get the hive moved.  Not to mention, I'm not sure I buy the argument that slightly disrupting their world a little each day for 2 months running is less harmful in the long run then one big move.

Maybe you could try leaving your box to catch the stragglers for a day or two, then move it right besides your weaker hive at it's new location.  Do the branch trick again but maybe first leave them closed up a couple or few days if your weather allows this...then shake them out a couple days later.

Offline yantabulla

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #3 on: December 01, 2013, 05:22:30 am »
More bad advice.

Offline johnauck

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #4 on: December 01, 2013, 09:30:47 am »
Hi Yanta, yes moving hives short distances is controversial, and there are many opinions. In the past I have moved hives about 10km away to a friend's property, and I still have that option. Since I have read that it might be effective using branches and confinement etc to minimise drift moving less than 2 miles, I thought I'd give it a try.

I don't think my first attempt was a complete failure, some bees drifted back, but not all of them. It might have been less than 1000 or so. And by the looks of it mostly from one hive. If it doesn't seem to be working tomorrow, I will move the weaker hive  back.

When I opened them this morning, I did observe the bees  circling around before flying off, suggesting they were reorienting.

Moots, I will try again tomorrow morning with the drift box.
Tonight I sealed up the drifted bees in their box and moved it over next to the new location. I will see how they go in the morning.

From what I gather trying to get them to reorient is not 100%, some bees will drift back but most of them will realise and circle around and find the new location. I probably should have waited until late in the day to place the fresh box at the old location for the bees to have somewhere to stay overnight.

I reckon next time I might try moving them when the weather is not so warm and sunny. May be a day or so of inclement weather when they don't fly will help.

Anyway, good to try out and learn something different.


cheers

john

Moots

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #5 on: December 01, 2013, 10:17:48 am »
More bad advice.


Yantra,
So according to you, I've given bad advice...And according to me, you've given impractical advice!

Hopefully for John's sake, someone else will chime in.  :-D

Offline kanga

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #6 on: December 01, 2013, 01:13:26 pm »
John, I recently moved 4 hives approx 7m and I placed branches in front of the hives and it took them about 5 days to totally reorient to the new location. I shifted them just on dark and did not confine them at all, and I did not leave any hives or boxes back at the old location.

It was the first time I had attempted to move just a short distance and it did not appear to affect the bees.

Hope everything goes okay for you.

Kev


 

Offline yantabulla

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #7 on: December 01, 2013, 02:53:11 pm »
Moots John has it worked out now.

Bad advice for Australian conditions.

Hopefully for John's sake his hives aren't too badly weakened.

Kanga 7 metres is different to 100 metres.

Yanta

Moots

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #8 on: December 01, 2013, 07:39:39 pm »
Moots John has it worked out now.

Bad advice for Australian conditions.

Hopefully for John's sake his hives aren't too badly weakened.

Kanga 7 metres is different to 100 metres.

Yanta

Glad to hear it worked out!  I love a happy ending.  :)

Care to share how he "worked it out"...Did he go with Plan B and move them a few kilometers away, then move them back?

Offline johnauck

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #9 on: December 01, 2013, 08:13:05 pm »
Thanx for all the input, I hope I didn't stir the possum up too much :-)

I persevered with the short distance move, it seems much better this morning, there are a few hundred bees flying around the old location. I expect most of them will circle around today and find their old hive. No clustering at the old location.

I don't think conditions are any different here to influence the success of moving short distances. We have had a few days of nice fine weather here in South Gippsland. I had planned to move them to the other property but I thought I'd give the short move a go.


I am lucky I have a friend who has a property about 10km away, he has lots of trees. I moved two weak hives over there about 1 month ago, and brought them back last night, they seem to have really enjoyed their stay there, built up nicely. When I moved them they were weakened by a damp, shady location so they had to be moved.

In future I guess it depends on the situation, weather conditions etc to decide how to move them a short distance.

Anyway if you are not making mistakes you are not learning anything :-)


cheers

john

Offline Michael Bush

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #10 on: December 09, 2013, 08:32:56 pm »
What you need at the old location is absolutely nothing.  They need to see nothing there so they will look for the new location,  They will spiral out until they find a hive and they will move into the first hive they find.  As long as you keep putting a box at the old location the confusion will continue.  It is helpful to put one there right at dark and then move it after dark next to the new location, but until it's almost dark it will just distract them.
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Offline NewB

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #11 on: June 07, 2014, 09:16:58 am »
I moved my hive from the front of the house to the back, about 50m, without any drifting bees. Go ahead and move it and see what happens.

Offline nella

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #12 on: June 08, 2014, 10:26:06 am »
I am lucky I have a friend who has a property about 10km away, he has lots of trees. I moved two weak hives over there about 1 month ago, and brought them back last night, they seem to have really enjoyed their stay there, built up nicely. When I moved them they were weakened by a damp, shady location so they had to be moved.
john



You could have used this method to move the first hive that you were trying to move.

Offline jayj200

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #13 on: June 08, 2014, 11:25:37 am »
we moved a hive a short distance
they for over a week went to the old location
on the second day I placed a empty box there
every night I opened the box.
not a single bee even though during the day lots of bees were going in and out of the empty box.
Do not worry about them. they go home at night.
jay

Offline alfred

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #14 on: June 08, 2014, 01:10:43 pm »
I have moved hives short distances 50-100 ft, many times with out much problem. I just hang some sheets or branches or wooden lattice work in front of the hive so that they have to maneuver through or around it when they exit the hive. I get a few stragglers the next few days wandering around the old location, but no big deal. With in a few days all have found their new place, or drifted into my other hives.

Alfred

Offline rawfind

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #15 on: June 10, 2014, 12:03:38 pm »

Last night I moved two hives about 100m. I followed advice to place tree branches at the entrance to make bees reorient.





However, when I let them out this morning, quite a few field bees drifted back to the old location.
I put an empty hive (frames and foundation) at the old location for now.
It looks like most of the drifted bees are from the green box (slightly weaker of the two hives).
But I not sure what to do next?
I was thinking of waiting until this evening and move the empty box with field bees and place it on top of one of the green hive?
Maybe I should move the green hive back to the old location for now? Then the bees that did manage to reorient will be without a home.






cheers

john

you basically split your hive the longer you delay putting it back the more chance they will fight, if you must move them short distance
then probably the best way is to move the hive slowly bit by bit over a period of time, but its better to take them on holiday for a week
then bring them back to the new site

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Moving Hives Short Distance
« Reply #16 on: June 10, 2014, 01:06:15 pm »
Johnauck,
At dusk, take just the super that you put in the old location and place it on the weaker of the 2 hives. Only leave one or 2 frames in this super for them to collect on. In the morning remove it and put the 2 frame super back at the old location. You may have to do this 2 or three times. They learn quick. Works real well.
Jim
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