Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum
BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => HONEYBEE REMOVAL => Topic started by: D Semple on May 30, 2013, 12:44:09 pm
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Raining steady here today (yea).
I've got a large soaking wet swarm to get off of a light pole.
Should I wait till the rain quits? Should I give them some time to dry out after the rain quits before collecting them?
I'll be letting them march into a hive.
Thanks. ..Don
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Since you are going to let them walk in, I would definitely do it right now. I bet they will move in real quick. One caution, they will not be happy bees especially in the rain. At my daughters christening party, 30 years ago, one of my dads hives swarmed and landed in a small tree right front of the of their front door just as the party started. He just shook his head pulled out a hose and sprinkled water over them to get them to ball up real quick and then he shook them into a trash can. My father in law was there and asked about getting the bees. My dad told him over and over again that they would be a hot hive but he took them any way as his first hive. 5 years later, while visiting, my dad was able to tell which hive it was, out of 20 hives, because they were still hot. One note, they were always his biggest producers.
Jim
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i don't think getting wet makes them an eternally hot hive, but they will be cranky. + when they are wet they tend not to move well at all. if you can scoop the clump and put them in the hive it will probably be ok, but be prepared for them to be unhappy.
long ago i posted a picture of my gloves looking like a pin cushion. that was from a wet swarm :-D
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Thanks Jim and Kathy,
Lifes to short to deal with cranky girls, think I'll give them an hour or so after the rain quits to try them.
Come to think about it they are at they are at a Baptist Church maybe they expected to get wet all along. 8-)
Don
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most Baptists dunk, they don't sprinkle.
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sawdstmakr, 30 years ago, your dad only had to see that they were the little black german bees. He knew they would always be mean. The rain had nothing to do with it.
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The sun is out, go get them Don!
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Their caught.
Sadly about a third died from getting stuck out in the rain so long. Swarm had been there 3 days they said (darn Baptist were to cheap to call anybody). :(
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj72/DSemple/Bees%202011/Bees%202013/Raytown%20Baptist%20Church/IMG_20130530_164154_019_zps9bbd4b04.jpg) (http://s269.photobucket.com/user/DSemple/media/Bees%202011/Bees%202013/Raytown%20Baptist%20Church/IMG_20130530_164154_019_zps9bbd4b04.jpg.html)
Don
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i find a lot of people, epecailly in town, don't call right away. they google about it and find that "it's natures way of increasing the bee population" and think it's cool to leave them. they never think that the swarm has to go somewhere....like the attic...
then it doesn't go away and they get worried and call. by then, i have a cranky and hungry swarm.
D, do you charge for swarm pickup?
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D, do you charge for swarm pickup?
Yes generally $50 - $75, with a lot of exceptions (early season primary swarms, Vets, single moms, widows, minorities). Commercial jobs $125 to $250 depending on how big an emergency and difficulty.
Basically I charge fellow Republicans. :-\
Don
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A newbie question, but that's what I am, sooooo....
Except in cases of inclement weather, what's keeping a swarm in one place so long? Scouts haven't found a suitable place for them to set up shop? I saw a video of JP's yesterday capturing a swarm sitting on a truck. In a matter of a few hours, they had already deposited wax on the fenders. I found it odd they would start building on something that wasn't going to be home.
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that might be why they don't call you. i don't know anyone who charges for swarm pickup. but hey....if people will pay....
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that might be why they don't call you. i don't know anyone who charges for swarm pickup. but hey....if people will pay....
Kathy, there are quite a few that don't charge for swarm pickup in the Kansas City area also, but they quickly run out of equipment. Most try to cover gas money, I try to cover for my time also. Late season swarms I charge extra for to cover feeding cost.
But, like I said I make plenty of exceptions and do a lot of free swarm catches. This year in particular as swarm calls are way down after our drought and hard winter. I've only caught about 15 swarms to date, last year by now I had over 30.
We also have a very good network of beekeepers who trade swarm calls around town for convenience (Coates even manages to catch a few when his schedule lines up with Moon, Mars, Venus and Kid's baseball) :cheer:
This is the rain soaked swarm today. They are happy, happy, happy
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj72/DSemple/Bees%202011/Bees%202013/Raytown%20Baptist%20Church/IMG_20130531_121659_489_zps1c507097.jpg) (http://s269.photobucket.com/user/DSemple/media/Bees%202011/Bees%202013/Raytown%20Baptist%20Church/IMG_20130531_121659_489_zps1c507097.jpg.html)
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i never turn down a donation to the gas tank :-D i run out of stuff many years, but at that point i'm pretty much done with it anyway. this year i have limited my area to around here. that's enough when there's so much going on.
whatever works!
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A newbie question, but that's what I am, sooooo....
Except in cases of inclement weather, what's keeping a swarm in one place so long? Scouts haven't found a suitable place for them to set up shop? I saw a video of JP's yesterday capturing a swarm sitting on a truck. In a matter of a few hours, they had already deposited wax on the fenders. I found it odd they would start building on something that wasn't going to be home.
Indecision gets them sometimes. Virgin swarms more so than primary swarms.
About the wax, I don't think that they are building anything I just think the wax secreatters (sp) can't stop the flow and leak.
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they will start laying wax sometimes. i had one that had waxed a whole branch and i had a heck of a time getting them to settle in the box.
swarms are comb building machines and when they have left the hive, they are full of comb building fuel.
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D Semple, this one is for you.
http://winstonsalem.craigslist.org/grd/3819346370.html (http://winstonsalem.craigslist.org/grd/3819346370.html)
You collect from the customer, then call this guy. LOL
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sawdstmakr, 30 years ago, your dad only had to see that they were the little black german bees. He knew they would always be mean. The rain had nothing to do with it.
My dads hives were all itialian's. He never used any protection with his bees. You don't do that with black German bees.
Jim
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D Semple, this one is for you.
http://winstonsalem.craigslist.org/grd/3819346370.html (http://winstonsalem.craigslist.org/grd/3819346370.html)
You collect from the customer, then call this guy. LOL
I can see folks in areas that don't get a lot of swarms wanting them that badly, they are a blast to catch. :cheer:
I sell some later swarms, but am all about catching and keeping early primary swarms here which are worth 60 - 80 lbs. of honey, which is way better than you can do with 1st year packages locally.
Here in the KC area if your resourceful you can catch all the swarms you could ever want. And, I suspect 90% of swarms are not caught because they are never seen or reported.
If we ever run into each other Iddee I own you a bottle of good whisky for all the trap out information.
Don
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Glad it was useful.
Just thought you would like to see the difference in areas. As they say, "all beekeeping is local".
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I have to ask because I don't know...
You said you were going to walk them into the hive? What makes them decide that your hive is the way to go?
How do you know when the queen finally gets in the hive?
I have a lot to learn!!!
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I don't charge for swarms, but they are thin on the ground here. Only had one call so far this year, and they called back as I was loading up saying the bees left. (At least they called. Yeah!) I didn't charge for my first cutout or trap out because I figured I was in the learning phase. (The trap out was on my way home from work, so I wasn't paying a fortune in gas to monitor it.) I only charge about $50 to $70 for a cutout, people around here are cheap and will not pay more. I walk away from a lot of them when I think the people could easily pay more or the job is going to be a big hairy nightmare. The only reason I do them at all is I am still hungry for bees and some of my best bees came from cutouts. That, and oddly enough, people here won't pay diddly up front, but then will turn around and double your payment with a big tip afterwards. I think they feel guilty when they see how much work is involved. I am getting close to reaching my goal in number of hives, I will quit cutouts and trapouts when that happens. Even though I still find busting my butt all day to remove bees in a cut out fun. Bee madness indeed!
JC
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I have to ask because I don't know...
You said you were going to walk them into the hive? What makes them decide that your hive is the way to go?
How do you know when the queen finally gets in the hive?
I have a lot to learn!!!
Swarms will walk into the entrance of a hive on there own if you have the entrance in contact with the swarm and you help a little to get them started. Couple drops of Lemon Grass oil in the hive (which mimics the queen pheromone) and a few handful scoops of bees gently set on the landing board is generally all it takes.
This swarm was on the ground after having fallen from a thunderstorm over night. All I did was place the hive (with a couple of drops of Lemon grass oil in it) upwind of the colony with a little board for a ramp and they marched right in.
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj72/DSemple/Bees%202011/Bees%202012/Trent%20M/photo1.jpg) (http://s269.photobucket.com/user/DSemple/media/Bees%202011/Bees%202012/Trent%20M/photo1.jpg.html)