Another swarm lost it, another swarm lost it, repeat

[FlexMedia.tv]

These bees are causing me stress weight loss. Lol! I have 3 hives 2 strong one weak. 2 have swarmed. The first time they swarmed right next to my swarm catcher. I'm afraid of heights so I dropped them on the ground next to the new hive. Put as many as I could in the new hive but they all left. Yesterday they swarmed too high up so I don't know where they went but I'm almost sure I have a new hive in my swarm catcher...maybe.

My question is how do I transfer the bees into a new hive? The catcher only has one frame in it, and old frame from an old hive. I have a top with a hinge I could take out the old frame if they are building on it. Do I just take them and dump them in in the new hive and close it off. Leave it open? I have no clue. Last time. I thought I caught one it was just bees robbing. This time it's a bunch of them. I'll wait for some suggestions.

Thanks!
Art

[FlexMedia.tv]

Here's my catcher


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Fishing-Nut]

When I catch swarms (7 so far) I just dump them into the hive and let them go at it. I have had one to abscond the next morning though. But that one I didn't count in the 7. Be sure that you have your frames set up the way they need to be though because those bees are gonna build like crazy. I left one swarm in a box for 2 days with only one frame in it and they had already built a good size comb and had attached it to the lid of my swarm trap. Good luck though and congratulations on the catch.

[BeeMaster2]

First, you want to add 4 foundation less frames to your traps. This way you can leave the bees in the trap for a week and let them get established. Then move them into your hive.
For this one, put a queen excluder under the bottom box. Then tomorrow, move the frame and bees into your hive. The bees can get out but the queen cannot. Leave it on for several days until you see them draw out some comb and brood. If the queen is not mated, no eggs, you will have to let her out to mate.
By the way, add a strip of wood in the foundation less frames and melt some wax and paint the edge. This tells the bees where to draw the comb.
Jim

[cao]

I agree with sawdstmakr.  With only one frame, you need to get them out sooner than later.  The purpose of a trap is to allow them some time to call it home before you move them.  I would make sure to have the traps full of frames so you could wait a week or more to move them.

[Van, Arkansas, USA]

Flex, if you add a frame of brood to the new hive when you make the move from trap to new hive, the bees will not abscond except under very rare conditions.  A frame of brood will lock in the nurse bees.

[FlexMedia.tv]

Ok! So I have some foundation less (no wax inserts?) frames I can use in my swarm catchers in the future. I have 2 queen excluders for my smaller hives that won't fit. All I have is a homemade 10 deep brood box and medium super, so I set that next to my other hives. So with no excluder, let me re cap, I'll remove the one frame from the trap and place it in the new hive and dump the rest of the bees in add 9 more frames with wax inserts and use my entrance reducer? Sorry for the Freshman terms but after one year, I'm still new!
Thanks

[Acebird]

These bees are causing me stress weight loss. Lol!

Art, You should focus your efforts on preventing swarms rather than catching them afterwards.  Nature has bees programmed to move ~5 miles away from the hive they swarmed from.  You are trying to fight nature if you are trying to catch your own swarms.  Likewise you are fighting nature to try and prevent swarms too but because of what we know about bees the latter is easier to do.

[cao]

I'll remove the one frame from the trap and place it in the new hive and dump the rest of the bees in add 9 more frames with wax inserts and use my entrance reducer?

Yes.  If you are lucky you will find the queen on that frame.  If so, once that frame is in the new hive the rest of the bees will follow.

[FlexMedia.tv]

These bees are causing me stress weight loss. Lol!

Art, You should focus your efforts on preventing swarms rather than catching them afterwards.  Nature has bees programmed to move ~5 miles away from the hive they swarmed from.  You are trying to fight nature if you are trying to catch your own swarms.  Likewise you are fighting nature to try and prevent swarms too but because of what we know about bees the latter is easier to do.

Ace,
Yeah really it's not too much of a bother as long as I'm helping nature create more bees. It does bother me a bit when they swarm and leave my hive empty. Mine usually create  Queen cells and take off shortly after.

[scottie52]

I put 5 frames with plastic foundation in this trap and they drew all 5 out in 23 days. And had comb built on the bottom of 3 frames. Lots and lots of bees. I see from other posts. most hang there swarmtraps high up. I hang mine about five ft. up. I caught 6 swarms this year.

[paus]

I had good luck last year I caught 3 swarms using 5 traps this year I had 10 traps nd no swarms caught.  Wasp were very bad about building in traps this year so, no bees.  I saw a post that asked what to do with the trap if only one frame was in trap.  I have treated similar  traps as a cutout after the bees were well established, put them in a hive of your choice just as you would a cutout.

[FlexMedia.tv]

Nice!
Well I think I did it! There were a ton on the frame I left in there and there were a bunch of bur comb started. I couldn't tell if there were brood or not. One bad thing is I didn't try soon enough and there a small amount of bees on the tree where I had the trap and they have a bad attitude. I'm just hoping they stay in the new hive,
Art

[Acebird]

Ace,
Yeah really it's not too much of a bother as long as I'm helping nature create more bees.

I am not sure how it is in MI but in NY you will create more bees if you stop them from swarming and perishing in the winter.  Just saying if these are indeed swarmy bees you do not want them and you do not want them to survive in your area because that is all you will get.

[FlexMedia.tv]

That makes sense Acebird. Every hive I have had has died, wax moths or swarmed. They are in such a nice area and I'm such a nice guy!

[FlexMedia.tv]

Saw my first orientation flight from a bee! Hope that's a good sign they will stay...

[Fishing-Nut]

I hope they stay and do real good for you. Maybe being a first year bee keeper has something to do with it, but I get FIRED UP when I catch a swarm. I fish like a crazy person and it feels the same as reeling in a good one.

[cao]

That feeling hasn't gone away and I'm five years into this.  I don't see it ending soon.

[FlexMedia.tv]

I hope they stay and do real good for you. Maybe being a first year bee keeper has something to do with it, but I get FIRED UP when I catch a swarm. I fish like a crazy person and it feels the same as reeling in a good one.

Just want to retire and keep bees and fish everyday! Is that too much? *grin!*

[Fishing-Nut]

Nope..... sounds like the good life to me.

[FlexMedia.tv]

That feeling hasn't gone away and I'm five years into this.  I don't see it ending soon.

It's nice cao and they are still there! Phew!

[FlexMedia.tv]

Day 3 and they are still there! Pretty happy about that but one strange thing to this new person; on the tree where the trap was is still a baseball size clump of bees right where the trap was. These were the ones I thought would follow over to the new hive but they ain't budging. They are just in a clump not moving until I get too close then they brush me off the plate. I'll try to get a pic with this sad internet situation I have here.

[Fishing-Nut]

It happens to me to. I catch swarms here on my farm. Plug them up at night,then move them hundreds of yards to another area and it never fails that some of the bees find there way back to the tree. I'm sure someone with more experience than me will have a better option for you. but here's a couple of things I have done. After they are there for a day or 2 I will place another swarm trap in that same location. The bees WILL go inside. Then I plug them up after dark, the next morning I will take them down to where the rest of there colony is and open the box with the entrance facing the hive that there colony is in.  Usually mid day. In my experience they start nasonoving and move in with there folks. It might not get all of them. But will drastically reduced the numbers hanging out on the tree.  The other thing I have done is just left a frame of comb where the bees are and at night they'll be on it. Makes it a little easier to move them. I also found that after a day or 2, the ones on the tree are pretty pissy.

[paus]

I am going to repeat as best as I remember.  "It is hard to do, but leave them closed with adequate ventilation for three days and they will stay put".  I have had good luck doing this, I'm sure there other ways and I would like to hear about them.

[cao]

The ones left behind are either scouts that were out if it was a swarm that was caught or foragers that stayed out all night if it was a hive(or swarm trap) that was moved.  They will usually find a hive close by to join eventually.  And yes they are usually not too happy.  You wouldn't be either if you came back and your home was gone.

[FlexMedia.tv]

It's less of them now and a lot of activity in the new hive. Pretty exciting!