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Author Topic: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?  (Read 5218 times)

Offline Bob Wilson

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #20 on: June 15, 2019, 04:19:49 pm »
Only one hive beetle today on inspection and I smashed him. I still put in the brawney towel traps. We will see what that does. It seems a string hive. maybe they are running the beetles out.
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Online Ben Framed

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #21 on: January 26, 2021, 09:04:18 pm »
My bees were out and flying at my home yard today. I took the opportunity of the beautiful unseasonable warmer sunshiny day to add granular sugar Mountain Camp style for added insurance. I have learned here at Beemaster that SHB overwinter with our bees so I shouldn't have been too surprised to see a few under the tops. Not many, no more than two or three per hive and some hives seeing none. Even so, it was strange to me, seeing them in January just the same. I live in an area where the temperatures are common to experience lows in the 20's at least half the month of January.
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2 Chronicles 7:14
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Offline Bob Wilson

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #22 on: January 26, 2021, 11:08:54 pm »
Same here Ben. I saw a couple in a hive or two earlier this week. I'm glad you resurrected this old thread to say that. I was wondering if I had a problem brewing.
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Online Ben Framed

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #23 on: January 26, 2021, 11:23:56 pm »
Thank you Bob, I believe we will be ok. If I remember correctly, sawdstmakr once told me they, (SHB) will not reproduce until the temperatures are steady in the 70s. If I am mistaken perhaps Jim will chime in and correct me.
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2 Chronicles 7:14
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Offline Beeboy01

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #24 on: January 26, 2021, 11:37:48 pm »
Spotted about fifteen in one hive today. They were hanging out on a section of old comb in an outer frame, the hive had a problem with them last year. Pulled the old wonky comb and squashed the beetles then set up traps in all the hives. Not going to let them get a foot hold in my yard this year.
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Online BeeMaster2

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #25 on: January 27, 2021, 10:19:42 am »
Small hive beetles can live three months in ideal temperatures, with maximum adult longevity occurring when temperatures are between 28-32?C (82-90?F). Temperature can also drastically impact hatch success, time to hatching, larval growth, and adult fecundity.
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Offline Beeboy01

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #26 on: January 27, 2021, 10:39:09 am »
In other words they are tough little suckers and need to be killed on sight. ;)
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Offline JurassicApiary

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #27 on: January 29, 2021, 01:21:28 pm »
A downside to living in paradise I guess...with our warm climate the little pests are non-stop year round.  I live at a higher elevation on the island and even though our nighttime temps are in the mid-low 60's in the winter months, it doesn't seem to have an effect on the beetles; Not cold enough I suppose.  Like Jim, I use screened bottoms on all of my hives.  Will be letting our chickens into the apiary soon, once it's fully fenced to keep the dogs out...hopefully they will scavenge those beetle larvae.
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Offline Oldbeavo

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #28 on: January 30, 2021, 10:18:58 pm »
Beeboy01
Make sure there is no vacant space in your hives, keep the bees tight and this will help to keep SHB controlled.
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Offline Brian MCquilkin

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #29 on: January 31, 2021, 01:59:39 pm »
When I ran bees in Texas I found small hive beetles are a real challenge to control. It did not matter if it was in the shade or full sun. What seemed to work for me was making sure the beetles had no place to hide.  Seal all the interior joints so there are no gaps for the beetles to hide. Make sure hives are strong" lots of bees".
If you have hives that are week add more bees or reduce them down to nucs. I have tried most of the traps and they all work to a certain degree. The freeman type bottom board seemed to work for me. But I found no matter what you do if you don't have strong healthy hives you will forever spend a great deal of time-fighting the SHB all the time. Can't emphasize more" STRONG STRONG HIVES". I had a little handheld vacuum cleaner that I attached a small plastic clear hose to the and every time I popped a lid would just vacuum them up, which worked well.  The other major problem is Varroa at least I can treat varroa not so much SHB.
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Despite my efforts the bees are doing great

Online Ben Framed

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #30 on: January 31, 2021, 02:25:25 pm »
Quote from: Brian MCquilkin on January 31, 2021, 01:59:39 pm
When I ran bees in Texas I found small hive beetles are a real challenge to control. It did not matter if it was in the shade or full sun. What seemed to work for me was making sure the beetles had no place to hide.  Seal all the interior joints so there are no gaps for the beetles to hide. Make sure hives are strong" lots of bees".
If you have hives that are week add more bees or reduce them down to nucs. I have tried most of the traps and they all work to a certain degree. The freeman type bottom board seemed to work for me. But I found no matter what you do if you don't have strong healthy hives you will forever spend a great deal of time-fighting the SHB all the time. Can't emphasize more" STRONG STRONG HIVES". I had a little handheld vacuum cleaner that I attached a small plastic clear hose to the and every time I popped a lid would just vacuum them up, which worked well.  The other major problem is Varroa at least I can treat varroa not so much SHB.

Mr MCquilkin, The vacuum set up you described sounds like a good idea to me. When you have them vacuumed, how would you go about finishing them off? In other words how do you kill them before they can fly away?  Using a wet vac by adding water to the holding bucket so they will drown?
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2 Chronicles 7:14
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Offline Brian MCquilkin

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #31 on: February 01, 2021, 02:03:53 am »
Quote from: Ben Framed on January 31, 2021, 02:25:25 pm
Quote from: Brian MCquilkin on January 31, 2021, 01:59:39 pm
Mr MCquilkin, The vacuum set up you described sounds like a good idea to me. When you have them vacuumed, how would you go about finishing them off? In other words how do you kill them before they can fly away?  Using a wet vac by adding water to the holding bucket so they will drown?

I had a 5 gal bucket at the home yard with some cooking oil in the bottom. I dumped them in that.  Left the beetles in the vac till I got home.
The vac was just a small portable one.
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Despite my efforts the bees are doing great

Offline Bob Wilson

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #32 on: February 05, 2021, 12:59:59 pm »
One of my hives is weaker, stressed, and more defensive than the others. I found 10-15 beetles corralled above the broodnest a few days ago.
I gave them two frames of capped brood from another hive, and I am going to add in two of those SHB oil traps that insert into the space between the top bars of the frames.
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Online Ben Framed

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Re: Anyone seeing Small Hive Beetles?
« Reply #33 on: February 05, 2021, 05:00:13 pm »
Quote from: Bob Wilson on February 05, 2021, 12:59:59 pm
One of my hives is weaker, stressed, and more defensive than the others. I found 10-15 beetles corralled above the broodnest a few days ago.
I gave them two frames of capped brood from another hive, and I am going to add in two of those SHB oil traps that insert into the space between the top bars of the frames.


WOW frames of capped brood already!  It may be a mistake by me but I started feeding pollen sub today. It is warm enough that the bees are flying in abundance today and they are all over it. (52F)

For curiosity, I wonder when SHB begin flying?
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2 Chronicles 7:14
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
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