Just missed a pretty big swarm...

Perone hive build + a swarm into the roof space

Just missed this lot - it was a big swarm, and they went inside pretty quickly. Between first spotting them and getting the camera out about half of them had gone in. The space is a spot that has had bees most years previously, unfortunately they were sprayed about 2 months ago (not my idea) and I'm concerned that they won't survive. They are not a nuisance in the garden but a few lost bees keep getting in doors.

well, that's a drag.

I would recommend building a bait hive (or several) with some top bars that will fit in your Perone hive. put them up in likely places, and when a swarm moves in, you can move them top bars and all into the permanent hive.

if the colony that just moved into the roof doesn't make it through the winter, stuffing some steel wool in the entrance will prevent repopulation. if they do make it, and don't appear to be suffering from any residual pesticide, you might consider a trapout.

tel jetson wrote:well, that's a drag.

I would recommend building a bait hive (or several) with some top bars that will fit in your Perone hive. put them up in likely places, and when a swarm moves in, you can move them top bars and all into the permanent hive.

if the colony that just moved into the roof doesn't make it through the winter, stuffing some steel wool in the entrance will prevent repopulation. if they do make it, and don't appear to be suffering from any residual pesticide, you might consider a trapout.

Do you use movable bars in your perone hives then? The plans I have built from use fixed bars. Or do you mix and match?

I was wondering if there might be a way to setup a smaller bait hive that could then be simply placed inside the larger brood chamber of the perone - totally minimise interference and disruption. Then when they are ready they can move into the rest of the box. The bait hive obviously gets buried in the brood chamber, but if you don't intend to ever go in there then that isn't a problem surely?

What do you mean by a "trapout" for the bees in the roof space? Not a term I've heard before.

Michael Cox wrote:
Do you use movable bars in your perone hives then? The plans I have built from use fixed bars. Or do you mix and match?

not movable bars exactly. I just leave the nine middle bars out of the comb grid. then I build several units of nine bars fixed together at the right spacing to fill that gap.

Michael Cox wrote:I was wondering if there might be a way to setup a smaller bait hive that could then be simply placed inside the larger brood chamber of the perone - totally minimise interference and disruption. Then when they are ready they can move into the rest of the box. The bait hive obviously gets buried in the brood chamber, but if you don't intend to ever go in there then that isn't a problem surely?

the only problem I see with that is interruption to the brood chamber. that can lead to some problems. I think you would be better off transferring the bees and comb on bars.

Michael Cox wrote:What do you mean by a "trapout" for the bees in the roof space? Not a term I've heard before.

there are several ways to do it, but I use a cone made of hardware cloth fixed at the entrance. the bees can get out, but they can't get back in. an active hive is placed in contact with the structure close to the entrance, and the bees locked out of their home will migrate into this hive. usually takes at least six weeks, and potentially twelve or more weeks, especially if something goes wrong. works pretty well, though. some folks just use a frame of eggs instead of a whole active colony. I don't have any frames, so a whole hive it is.

Michael and tel, the swarming has been late here due tot he unusual weather. I had two hives swarm last week and I missed a swarm that was about 30' up in a tree earlier. I am doing a trap out in a maple tree in a families front yard now and while I was there a neighbor stopped to ask if I would do a cut out in the wall of their milk parlor this weekend. I had put an ad on craig's list wanting swarms and colony removal from buildings and have 5 more trap outs or cut outs that I have not gotten to.
kent

kent smith wrote:I had put an ad on craig's list wanting swarms and colony removal from buildings and have 5 more trap outs or cut outs that I have not gotten to.
kent

too many folks around here offering to do those jobs for free these days. a couple years ago, I think I did eight cutouts. last year, I did one. this year, I've done one. that's alright, though. plenty of other things to keep me busy.