Good enough Dallasbeek. I totally understand and respect your position and appreciate your feedback and take it for what it is.
Indeed guys, I have a concern about AHB removals and basic keeping in general. I attended a small general "about beekeeping" type seminar a while back, before deciding to even get my first hives, mainly to get a refresher on everything since I hadn't been around bees since I helped a couple of uncles work hives back in the 70s . . . I was pretty young.
I wasn't heavily involved even then, but do remember the uncles discussing the AHBs several years later when they started showing up in south Texas. And of course we had plenty of the "killer bee" cases that made the news and got folks talking about them.
So naturally getting to know more about AHB was at the top of my list for attending the seminal. The beekeeper said that 99% of the feral bees in our area ARE in fact AHB. I questioned that point, but he claimed that was a fact and that a good portion of his 100 (roughly) hives are AHB that he has obtained through removals.
Says he just requeens the ones he wants in his tame yard and he keeps the AHB hives in a different area.
I asked why he bothered with keeping any AHB at all and he says they have some good aspects that make it worth it to him. Such as, they produce more honey faster, are much more "critter resistant", basically stronger queens and better in his opinion.
a class on what to do and how to properly warn the neighborhood when doing (AHB) removals.
I recommend you take a class before doing one.
I'm hoping to learn more about those claims myself and would also like to find some sort of class and/or mentor in this area that has some experience with the AHB and information to share.
The guy mentioned above does offer a basic / beginner class and an advanced class for beekeeping in general. I'll check with him and see if his advanced class will cover the AHB. I'll check to see if he's willing to share (even for a fee) it will be a good place to start for sure. I'm not sure but I think he may have only been doing the removals for a few years, but a few years experience is worth something indeed.
Whether or not, he's available, more is better in many cases and I consider this to be one of them. If anyone has any other resources for learning more about AHB in this area, please let me know.
Meanwhile, I intend to isolate the removal hives until they can be requeened successfully. I haven't run across any hot hives yet, but I do realize they can change their tune pretty quick when they reach a good size. Could it be that I stumbled upon one of the tricks to working them and could have a hot hive when working them like the rest in the bee yard? Possibly so, but I do have a vented full suit I put on any time I'm working with these hives . . . at least until I see what their temperature seems to be.
Because as mentioned, the full armor, even the vented suit, gets too hot down here this time of the year. Hell, it's too hot out there in cut-offs if you can't find some shade and plenty of water.
you might want to warn that if the hive is extremely aggressive you're required to destroy the bees,
I wasn't aware of that and am wondering of that's a state wide law or if A & M regulates that or what?
I spoke with the folks at A & M on the phone when I submitted my application for a removal permit and to register my bees, but nothing was ever mentioned about destroying hot bees.
I'll definitely need to know more about that in this area. I'll also need to know the best method, since I've never destroyed a colony. I understand the fire dept has a foam of some sort, soap I suppose and that they also used car wash wax on a tree hive recently after it attacked an elderly couple.
Much to know . . . much to learn . . .
Thanks for the replies and input guys.
GD