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Author Topic: Small Hive beetle  (Read 10413 times)

Offline hooyaman

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Small Hive beetle
« on: May 19, 2009, 11:00:05 pm »
This spring I was moving my bees from an observation hive to a 10 frame hive, but when I opened the observation hive I found hundreds of small hive beetles. I dont know how in the world they made it into my observation hive, but they did. When moving the bees, I smashed all the shb I could find with my little pry tool . Every time I open one of my hives and find any shb I smash them. I haven't found very many in my hives this year, but I suspect the will be back.  Just wondering if anyone has come up with a solution to ward off these little pests. I tried using the bread container method, but that didn't seem to work very well and I don't want to use chemicals. Smashing them seems to be working for now. It seems like someone would have found a solution by now.

                                                                                                                                                    Jeff

Offline SlickMick

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #1 on: May 19, 2009, 11:18:43 pm »
G'day Jeff. Have a look at these 3 links. They are pretty full discussions on the shb and should help you deal with them even if it only to help you to control them

http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,22131.0.html
http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,21943.0.html
http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,20521.0.html

Mick

Offline WOB419

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #2 on: May 19, 2009, 11:26:20 pm »
I have used the Hood Trap and liked it.  It uses apple juice as a bait so it is chemical free, if you don't consider AJ to be a chemical.  I saw a YouTube video of a guy using boric acid but I haven't tried it.  I think I found the video from a link in this forum.

Offline hooyaman

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #3 on: May 19, 2009, 11:42:28 pm »
thanks for the info. I tried the links mick give, but couldnt get the to work.  what is a hood trap?

Offline jclark96

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #4 on: May 20, 2009, 07:47:31 am »
I am new to the SHB saga as well, but am learning fast.

The hood trap is a plastic box that attatches to the bottom bar of a frame. It has three compartments, the center is filled with Apple Cider Vinegar, the two outside ones filled with mineral/vegetable oil. When trying to excape from the bees or attracted to the Vinegar the SHB fall into the oil and drowned.

The west SHB trap fills in the bottom board with a reservoir and a screen. Same idea, you fill the reservoir with oil, the beetles fall in and drowned. However, you must disassemble the whole hive to check, clean or refill.

I am currently experimenting with a Sonnny-Mel trap, very similar to a hood trap in operation, except constructed from a plastic sandwich box. It seems to work well, but I need to find a better place to put it. It is currently on my bottom board under the Slatted rack, so I have to take everything apart to get to it.

I am also trying the same idea made out of a CD case, so that it can be placed on top of the inner cover. I need to deploy version 2. My first attempt used the glue from a mouse trap. It worked on a few other insects, but the SHB that was in there was just running around. So, I would agree that glue, tape or sticky boards are useless against the SHB.

Good Luck

Offline mgmoore7

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #5 on: May 20, 2009, 08:07:50 am »
With that many SHB in your OB hive, I would move them out of their and use a number of traps at the same time to get your infestation under control.

Offline SlickMick

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #6 on: May 20, 2009, 08:20:50 am »
I have now tried to respond to this thread a number of times without success so I will give it another go.

Jeff, the long way round is to go to http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,20521.0.html. This is the link to the Beekeeping Learning Centre on this forum. From there go to http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/board,41.0.html. This will take you to the Disease and Pest Control part of the forum. The following links will take you directly into 3 discussions on the SHB. Please pm me with your email address if you still cant get in and I will email the links to you.

http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,20521.0.html
http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,21943.0.html
http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,22131.0.html

The following is a new thread that will undoubtedly attract its share of attention

http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,22350.0.html

Hope you can get into them this time

Mick


Offline WOB419

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #7 on: May 20, 2009, 08:46:47 am »
Jclark96 is correct about the apple cidar vinegar.  I said apple juice in my previous post by mistake.  I have used the Hood trap with just the vinegar and it seemed to work fine.  I also did as he described and put the oil in 2 sections and vinegar in the middle.  Both ways seemed to work about the same for me, but that is a very small sample size.

I also have a screened bottom board and like the original poster, I kill as many as I see with a pair of needle nose pliers or forceps (when I see them on the comb), or I smash them with my hive tool when I see them on wood.  I can do this with a couple of hives but if you have many more hives than that it would be very time consuming.  I have also started leaving the propolis where ever the bees want to put it.  I can manage to get the frames out OK with that stuff in there.  The thought is that the bees will use the propolis to fill in any small areas that the beetle can hide in but that the bee can not get to.  Then the bees participate in controlling the SHB population.

Last year I was about to find a Small Hive Beetle forum and ask them what to do about these bees that were getting into my Small Hive Beetle hives because I had so many of the beetles.  This year the population is way down for me and very under control, but again, this is a very small sample size.

Good luck.

Offline sc-bee

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #8 on: May 24, 2009, 12:52:26 am »
Hood trap: Loses shape and tends to trap alot of bees after it loses shape. That has been my experience but others may have had better luck.







AJ's About the only time I had much success with it was when this picture was taken. Can't seem to get them to go into trap.



These two speak for themselves:





John 3:16

Offline SlickMick

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #9 on: May 24, 2009, 04:36:39 am »
Those last 2 pics do speak for themselves and that is why no one shb territory can afford to be complacent with them.

That is what 2 of my hives looked like late last year.. it really is devestating and quite depressing and the job of cleaning things up is disgusting  :-P

Mick

Offline asprince

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #10 on: May 27, 2009, 10:43:24 pm »
I am a seasoned SHB warrior. I Go busy and let a nuc that I was nursing get weak. The beetles took over in no time. My new queen had just started laying last week. I found her on the bottom board covered with ants. The rest of the bees absconded. I washed off the slime and put the entire nuc in the freezer. I will put the frames in a strong hive next week and let them clean up the rest of the mess.

Steve
Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resembalance to the first. - Ronald Reagan

Offline Natalie

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #11 on: May 28, 2009, 05:38:52 pm »
So the how long does the small hive beetle pupate in the ground before it returns to the hive?
Which does more damage the larva or the beetle?
I know the wax moth worms do alot of damage to the hives as larvae but what does the damage when it comes to shb, the beetles itself or the larva?

Offline jfreeman1944

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #12 on: May 28, 2009, 06:38:59 pm »
'It seems like someone would have found a solution by now.'
There's a new trap on the market that uses a screened bottom board and an oil tray underneath. Check the June issue of American Bee Journal to see an ad.
Jerry

Offline SlickMick

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #13 on: May 28, 2009, 06:54:11 pm »
So the how long does the small hive beetle pupate in the ground before it returns to the hive?
Which does more damage the larva or the beetle?
I know the wax moth worms do alot of damage to the hives as larvae but what does the damage when it comes to shb, the beetles itself or the larva?

Natalie, have a look at the last 2 pics in the post a couple up from yours. These are of the damage caused by the larva. By themselves, the beetle only lays eggs and I believe eats pollen and brood. It is their egg laying capacity that brings about the huge number of larva that overtakes a hive and creates what you see in those photos so the presence of the beetle should not be seen as something less sinister than the larva. To get the larva there has to be the beetle so the beetle is no less dangerous.

The other thing is that the larva do not have to enter the ground to pupate and can do so within the hive. To my way of thinking, if it is possible to rid the hive of as many beetle as practical, it reduces the capacity of the beetle to lay and produce the huge numbers of larva that overpower the hive. At present the only way to do this is by the use of traps and by management of the strength of the hive leaving no unprotected space for the beetle to hide and lay.

Mick

Offline Natalie

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #14 on: May 28, 2009, 11:16:53 pm »
Mick thanks for explaining that for me. I just dread the thought of those things reaking havoc on any of my hives.
I got 3 more nucs last night and I installed them today and was desperately looking them over for anything out of the ordinary.
Those are some ugly looking things aren't they.
I wonder which does the most damage to a hive wax moth worms or the shb.

Offline sc-bee

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #15 on: May 28, 2009, 11:57:41 pm »
Wax moth is usually the sign of something else wrong in the hive. Some folks say the same about shb but I am not sure I agree. Some bees just don't corral or chase the shb.

Wax moths spray the frames with a little BT. SHB hold on to your socks and be ready for a fight :(!
John 3:16

Offline asprince

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #16 on: May 29, 2009, 08:19:00 pm »
I was checking on some of my swarm hives today and noticed SHB larva on the bottom board. I did not see any on the frames. It looks as though the bees were pulling the larva off the frames. I am going to check on them again in the morning. This is the first time that I have see larva in a hive that was not slimed.

Steve

   
Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resembalance to the first. - Ronald Reagan

Offline SlickMick

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Re: Small Hive beetle
« Reply #17 on: May 30, 2009, 04:51:09 am »
Steve, there will be larva in the comb, perhaps under the cap. The larva on the floor is only the tip of the iceberg. I suggest that you be really vigalent in monitoring things as the beetle must be laying for you to have the larva dropping to the floor. Do you have beetle traps in your hive?

Mick