BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER > NATURAL & ORGANIC BEEKEEPING METHODS
Differing Opinions on Drone Trapping
The15thMember:
I was talking with a beekeeper friend of mine the other day and we got on the subject of drone trapping. She was talking about how instead of cutting out her drone comb, she leaves it in, which draws the mites into the drone brood instead of into the worker brood. She said if you leave the drone brood in, then it doesn't matter if they are infested with mites, because you'd rather have sickly drones than sickly workers. This seems to be a different train of thought to what I usually hear on drone trapping, where you cut out the comb because the mites breed more in the drone brood. What are your thoughts on these opposing philosophies?
jimineycricket:
I do not think you want the mites in the drone cells getting out and spreading to the rest of the brood cells. So yes cut them out.
jimmy
Acebird:
--- Quote from: The15thMember on June 01, 2020, 10:27:38 am ---She said if you leave the drone brood in, then it doesn't matter if they are infested with mites, because you'd rather have sickly drones than sickly workers.
--- End quote ---
I don't cull drone brood but that is an incorrect conclusion. If the drones are infested with varroa then the hive is infested with varroa and will likely not do well. It really only works if the bees are pulling infected cells because it is a matter of critical timing.
The15thMember:
Thanks both of you. I guess the other issue is that the drones don't just stay in one colony, and they could easily spread mites between colonies as well.
Ben Framed:
What are your thoughts on these opposing philosophies?
> I do not think you want the mites in the drone cells getting out
> If the drones are infested with varroa then the hive is infested with varroa and will likely not do well.
> I guess the other issue is that the drones don't just stay in one colony, and they could easily spread
mites between colonies as well.
All three above taken from your replies sound accurate to me.
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