I do not yet have a hive, but I have recently purchased a small coop and how to have a few laying hens.....
My question is will the chickens eat all the bees in a back yard area?
Would the two not be compatible?
The chickens will eat the SHB and wax moths. They are a great asset to the bees.
Kampus,
We have chickens as well as a lot of hives. I do not have free roaming chickens right now only because the predators get them but I have in the past. I never had any problems with the chickens eating live bees. They will clean up the dead ones. I have read that you can also use them to clean out dead brood from old frames.
Jim Altmiller
Good combo, chickens and bees.
I had free range chickens and bees for decades. It was never a problem. On the rare occasion I ever saw a chicken eat a live bee, they seemed to regret it. The chickens will certainly eat brood if you feed it to them. I would always feed the scraps from a cutout to them. I would be concerned if the chickens are close to the hives and can't run away from the bees if the bees get aggressive. But that would be my only concern.
I have about 35 chickens that go where they want. I have ten hives. Never had any problems with either being close to each other. The bees get in the chicken food every spring by the hundreds. I have watched chickens eat right beside them.
Cheers
gww
Yes, my chickens would eat the dead bees in front of the hives, but they could always run away if they were attacked.
they've always been an asset at my house
Thanks guys!