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Author Topic: Mother's Day Swarm---- May 10, 2009  (Read 2313 times)

Offline JP

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Mother's Day Swarm---- May 10, 2009
« on: May 10, 2009, 03:56:59 pm »
Last year these people had a booming hive in their wall, I was supposed to remove it but I never heard back from them until about 3 weeks ago.

I went by and there was no activity then, so I told them to go ahead and seal every opening except the weep holes.

Yesterday they called and scouts were really checking the area out, so I left a swarm trap and a deep with drawn comb. Of course its difficult for the swarm trap and the deep to compete with a wall full of old comb and honey but hey it was worth a try.

This morning I got the call, a ball of bees on the window and bees entering the wall. I may have got the queen in the box on the first swoop but I knew if I did she was most likely a virgin cause they just weren't cooperating.

I bee quicked the wall from the interior and exterior as well as the soffit and this confused the bees thoroughly as there were bees in the deep and most in the swarm trap, but it was a chaotic scene to say the least.

Eventually most of the bees wound up on the trap and after looking and shaking and looking and shaking, I finally found her in the trap, caged her, then set them up in a deep and a medium with feed.

Two years in a row, swarms on Mother's day!

Pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/pyxicephalus/May102009#


...JP
My Youtube page is titled JPthebeeman with hundreds of educational & entertaining videos.

My website JPthebeeman.com http://jpthebeeman.com

Offline Rebel Rose Apiary

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Re: Mother's Day Swarm---- May 10, 2009
« Reply #1 on: May 10, 2009, 06:52:11 pm »
JP, that is really great! All I am getting today is tons unpon tons of buffalo gnats and a pair of ticks! Not even a call about bumbles! Hey, I am getting bored!
 
My "swarm addiction" is driving me crazy! I love the rush of getting swarms!

Brenda

Offline 1reb

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Re: Mother's Day Swarm---- May 10, 2009
« Reply #2 on: May 10, 2009, 08:22:32 pm »
You are a luckly man,JP

Johnny

Offline Luckyparrot

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Re: Mother's Day Swarm---- May 10, 2009
« Reply #3 on: May 10, 2009, 09:54:55 pm »
That's alot of bees ! I wish my hive just has 1/10 of that.

Offline JP

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  • I like doing cut-outs, but I love catching swarms!
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Re: Mother's Day Swarm---- May 10, 2009
« Reply #4 on: May 10, 2009, 10:29:26 pm »
The lady just called me and said about 5:30 they all left the box and went up into a tallow tree.

I told her they came back to the box right?

She said well yes they did. Can't leave home without the queen now.


...JP
My Youtube page is titled JPthebeeman with hundreds of educational & entertaining videos.

My website JPthebeeman.com http://jpthebeeman.com