Welcome, Guest

Author Topic: Bear strikes hard  (Read 6094 times)

Offline Bees In Miami

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 169
  • Gender: Female
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #20 on: January 15, 2013, 09:15:39 pm »
Scott:  I am so sorry!  That super sux!!!  I sure hope things turn around for you soon!  I hope Peggy is healing well, and that you have successfully relocated.  Thinking of you both, and good to see you back! 
Michelle

Offline JRH

  • New Bee
  • *
  • Posts: 27
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #21 on: January 15, 2013, 09:16:07 pm »
Quote
Electric fence helps, but it is not foolproof.   I don't know if it is practical at a commercial level, but I have found that keeping all my hives strapped reduces damage tremendously.

Got to respectfully disagree.  Any well-designed electric fence will defeat bears.  This is proven every day everywhere in bear country.  Strapping just causes more damage because the bear is forced to bash the outer box to get at the frames of brood and honey inside.

Offline T Beek

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 2775
  • Gender: Male
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #22 on: January 17, 2013, 08:06:51 am »
Greetings from Black Bear Country!

Spring 2011.  After 5 visits in over 3 weeks a big (over 450lbs) old (grey whiskers) boar (boy bear) wiped out the last remains of our beeyard.  Fortunately we only had 3 colonies, but one was a 3 year survivor colony.  Caught him in the act one night and only a shotgun blast over his head from 10-15 ' away caused him to leave....the same way he came....right through my SIX strands of electric fence.  

The Wildlife Manager  :roll: who finally trapped this old guy said "he'd likely done this before and thus had 'no fear' of electric fences."  I can only agree.  I mean "really" if a Bear can take several thousand stings to his head I doubt an electric fence will 'always' succeed.  Once brood is tasted nothing else matters to a determined Bear.

Immediately following that episode we bought 4 of those NITEGUARD lites seen in all the BEEK mags for $19.99.  We've since had several bear in the area, in fact our nearest neighbor a 1/4 mile down the road lost a 200lb alpaca to another Male Bear during the 2012 mating season (males can get pretty unpredictable that time of year) and we caught one in our garbage, not 100yards from our beeyard, but the lights worked and continue to.......so far.  I should say that 2011 was the first time we had Bear disturb our bees in almost 10 years, in Bear Country.  When we had pigs for several years when the kids were still home, they'd (Bear) bother them sometimes but nothing like the damage done to our bees.  

I'm buying more Niteguard lites before Spring comes and recommend them to anyone keeping bees when in Bear Country.
"Trust those who seek the truth, doubt those who say they've found it."

Offline Larry Bees

  • Field Bee
  • ***
  • Posts: 711
  • Gender: Male
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #23 on: January 29, 2013, 06:53:24 pm »
Wow Scott! Does your bad luck never end?

I haven't been on this site for awhile and just now read this.

Sorry this happened !

Larry

Offline rubeehaven2

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 56
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #24 on: January 29, 2013, 07:41:14 pm »
Sorry about your losses.  That's really a shame.  I don't know about the 8% honey bear thing, but I do know that once a bear finds a food source, it will NEVER forget.  At some point it will be back for more.

Good luck.

Rich

Offline VolunteerK9

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 1647
  • Gender: Male
  • Gamecock fan in UT land.
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #25 on: January 29, 2013, 08:03:02 pm »
I've wondered if those night eye things actually worked or not. Thanks for the info

Offline MTWIBadger

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 96
  • Gender: Male
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #26 on: January 30, 2013, 11:29:38 am »
All the commercial bee yards in my neck of the woods have electric fencing around them. I haven't had any problems with bears getting into my hives YET but have been sighted in my neighborhood.  I have a single hot wire on the fence surrounding my yard. I even have apple trees so at some point I expect to be hit.

Offline T Beek

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 2775
  • Gender: Male
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #27 on: January 30, 2013, 11:57:28 am »
I've only had 'one' encounter w/ a bear and my bees.  The bear plowed through six strands of electric fence and when caught in the act, plowed back through it again. 

An electric fence will not detour a determined bear, nor will thousands of beestings apparently  :laugh:
"Trust those who seek the truth, doubt those who say they've found it."

Offline Jim134

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 3045
  • Gender: Male
    • Franklin County Beekeepers Association
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #28 on: January 30, 2013, 12:10:38 pm »
I've wondered if those night eye things actually worked or not. Thanks for the info

night eyes do not work in MA.

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/76155_1561864169816_3058156_n.jpg


BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)
"Tell me and I'll forget,show me and I may  remember,involve me and I'll understand"
        Chinese Proverb

"The farmer is the only man in our economy who buys everything at retail, sells everything at wholesale, and pays the freight both ways."
 John F. Kennedy
Franklin County Beekeepers Association MA. http://www.franklinmabeekeepers.org/

Offline mdbee

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 68
  • Gender: Male
Re: Bear strikes hard
« Reply #29 on: January 30, 2013, 01:03:39 pm »
I had a bear this week go through 5 strands of barbwire, he has not came back yet and i did bait the wire this time. I think like some of the rest and a 150 gr moving around 3000 ftps will be the next. I have a 10,000 volt solarcharger on them.

 

anything