Beekeeping Adventures - Small Hive Beetles TRAPPED!
This beehive inspection shows lots of HONEY! I'm glad to see that, but I'm also glad to see that the beetle traps appear to be working.
Not long ago a buddy, a fellow youtuber and beekeeper, told me about this trick for trapping the Small Hive Beetle (SHB). I tried it -see here- ... but initially wasn't impressed -see here- .
This time, however, I saw some great results! This trick looks like a keeper!
The Small Hive Beetle can destroy a hive quickly if the hive strength drops. As long as the hive colony is strong they are kept in check, but if anything happens in the hive to throw the bees off... the SHB can take over quickly!
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I realize that in a healthy environment, there's always a balance of beneficial and "harmful" players.
Could the SHB be contributing to CCD or is it just that the hive gets stressed and goes "out of balance"?
The SHB is kept in balance when the hive is strong, but always just lurking waiting for an opportunity to take over when the hive gets weak. I've heard it said that the SHB doesn't kill a hive on their own, but will make the decline of a hive go much quicker if anything else makes the bees weak.
Wow the sound of those bees after smoking. Why I don't my students a smoker till they lean to work the hive and develop a style of working the bees and not agitate them. I will be doing a video soon on that topic. Takes a while to learn the reaction of the bees to your actions in the hive. Smoking covers your action by making the bees think there is a fire nearby and have to prepare to abandon their home. Keep making videos they are fun.
I am very fortunate the we don't have hive beetles in our zone.
I would love to see that video :) For the first few seasons we had much more gentle bees.... then, there was that one day that changed my mind about working bees without a suit. Now, I always wear a suit and always puff the smoke. Some of my hives are probably gentle enough to do without, but then again I just don't know.
Aggression in bees is relative to two main things maybe 3.
first genetics. Aggression is the first to emerge with inbreeding.
Second is stress. things that cause stress are but not exclusive to.
cramped quarters due to lack of management or the weather has been bad and all those girls are stuck together for a few days.
stress from contamination chemicals lack of food
poor handling such as too much smoke (they are stressed by the fear of losing the hive to fire) When smoked they don't respond as much to poor handling. They are preoccupied with escape preparations but they do remember the bad handling so they will be more aggressive each time you handle them rough.
as you are in your protection use smoker way less then you did in the video though in fact don't use it for a time have it lit in the yard if you really need it. Now you will see which actions get their attention and which don't. Generally they will be banging the hive when opening. snapping the inner cover off with a quick jerky or sudden kind of way crack it gently and lift the inner cover of slowly giving them a chance to adjust to the sudden removal of their roof. not sure but it seemed like you did not have a inner cover. This allow them to glue down the cover making it harder to remove it and causing more stress from banging.
Once in the hive you will be able see not just hear what they are thinking. If you do something that disturbs them pause then move more slow. Remember that sudden quick movements will disturb them. Distance of the movement from the comb also has an effect so I use the same moment I use with my table saw. I Imagen the center of the hive being a buss saw and I move my hand up in an ark over the center of the hive to keep the blade from cutting finger off.
I work my bees this way and teach may students the same. I learned this from my first teacher 3 or 4 generation beekeeper 10,000 hives in the us and a thousand near me in Alberta. He was my brother in law. I was crew forman on my first day in the yard I had to evaluate the hive and get the two workers to pack boxes for placement. One was a heavy footed man and would bang the hive as he set the boxes down. I could tell from the actions of the bees how close he was. As he approached their bums would rise and fly of at hive as he got close ignoring me standing right there with the hive open. Never would have saw how sensitive to the they are if they had been smoked.
If you must smoke. Personally prefer to smoke only if I have to or in my operation to teach students how to smoke.
General rules are 2 or 3 puffs in the entrance. let stand a few min then when you crack the inner cover and they are still feisty then a couple on the side of the box to the wind will drift across the hive. I puff down on the hive like you did in the video only if I intend to remove the bur comb for the medicinal wax market.
Your experience in the yard will develop your relationship. We do develop a relationship. One that ties us together in amazing ways.
I do like your confidence with the bees. I also appreciate the desire to share with us your experiences with others. keep doing it. I will pipe up if I see a chance to share for you and your followers.
A really big THANK YOU for taking the time to reply like that. There is so much conflicting information about everything bees. In past videos I chose not to use smoke and I got lit up in the comments about how awful I was for not using smoke. They believed that I was causing them to become more angry. Then in other videos I would use smoke and would get the "OMG you use too much smoke" comments. They believe that no smoke is better. Since I do not have a mentor here in person I have to rely on learning on my own and scouring the web for information. The web is good but SO MUCH conflicting information. This is why I share my journey with the message that it's just a journey, and I am no expert. Some will gleen some good, some will laugh, others will hate :) You have worded your criticism beautifully that makes me feel like you care about me AND the bees. Thank you.
I have many good friends that are beekeepers some very vary knowledgeable. when it comes to smoking. They smoke first ask questions later. if at all. They teas me that after years of beekeeping my smoker goes out. I was fortunate it seems that I had a teacher that did not smoke.4 gen beekeeper . His attitude was it was a dangerous weapon in the hands of the inexperienced beekeeper.
Your point about getting flamed for smoking to much or not at all are for the most part based on personal belief and experience. In most bee coursed they first thing they teach you is to use the smoker. You are also taught that you can't bee keep without it. They say this because that is what they were taught.
To me its more important to learn when to smoke and when not to smoke. The only way to do that in my mind and experience is to learn your action effect on the hive. You cannot see that when you have smoked. It's like seeing how someone thinks and acts when high on some drug. Its not who they are. Its who they are when they are high.
Yes there is lots of conflicting information. It seems beekeeping has an unusually high number of opinions on any given topic. Heck I have lots of conflicting ideas myself. but they are all based on a way of doing a particular thing with the hive. There is an old saying ask 10 beekeepers how to do something and you will get 100 ways. That is because most ways are based on your relationship with the bees. Combined with the fact there indeed or 100 ways to do a particulate thing with the bees. Mostly because the bees are far more adaptable than we are. Or think they are.
It's becomes about choosing the voices that resonate with you. And combining them to create what works for you, your bees and what you deed done and in the conditions to which the work is being done.
In my zone you can't feed back honey. It's two contaminated. Did not used to be that way. In another you should feed honey if you can.
Thanks for saying that . I had no intention of putting you down for your action. It was an observation based on the way you were smoking and the response of the bees. It was an opportunity to share with you and your followers my views on smoking. I am glad you took it as I intended.
I do care about the bees and you as a beekeeper. If my sharing my experience helps you develop a better relationship with your bees. You both will thrive.
Your feed back also helps me to tune what and how I say it so we all benefit especially the bees.
Keep making videos and sharing your experiences with the bees. It teaches people about how important our relationship with the bees and the world is.
I am fallowing you so feel free to ask any questions that you may have.
That's amazing. I'd love to try beekeeping, but haven't taken the plunge yet. Thanks for posting!
It's an interesting hobby. It's way more involved than I ever thought it was going to be. I do hope you can get involved with it on some level. It's crazy scary sometimes, but also rewarding LOL