I'm thinking of keeping some bees. However, we have bears around here. They tend to keep their distance, unlike the moose, but still ... isn't a hive full of honey going to be tempting? Any thoughts of how to keep the bears from the bees? Are the bees quite capable of taking care of themselves, as in swarming a bear that gets too close?
Thanks.
yes,
Solar electric fence around the hives. My hives are in an area with Bears. I have a five wire electric fence. It is the tape and solar powered. It works great. I have had it for three years. No bear or skunk problem. It took us about two hours to set up. I test everything periodically. The hives must be a certain distance from the fence and the wires low enough a critter can not sneak under. I thing the height of the highest tape is 42 inches or more.
I hope that helps. The whole cost was under $300.
Do a search on 'bears' - there are several threads which discuss it in depth.