Are Yellow Jackets the enemy of Honey Bees?

[CoolBees]

I was going to ask this too.  That is a really neat idea, Alan.  I've never seen anything like that before for bear protection.
     

Per usual - it was something I dreamed up - for a location with lots of bears, and no electricity. The bears chewed and scraped the entrances some - and I ate one of the bears.  But no other harm came than that. ... it actually worked better than I expected.

The cage provides the Hornets with landing places at my eye-level - above the hives. Makes it easy to watch them.

[The15thMember]

Per usual - it was something I dreamed up - for a location with lots of bears, and no electricity. The bears chewed and scraped the entrances some - and I ate one of the bears. But no other harm came than that. ... it actually worked better than I expected.

The cage provides the Hornets with landing places at my eye-level - above the hives. Makes it easy to watch them.

[Ben Framed]

Member do you have bears in your area?

[The15thMember]

Member do you have bears in your area?

This is definitely bear country, but I've never seen any in my immediate area.  I've actually never personally seen any at all, but lots of people I know have.  Our bears around here are still wild enough to avoid decently populated areas.  Over in Asheville, it is another matter.  The bears there, through learning to live around people, have become prolific, bold, and a big problem.  In my area one hot wire or a couple of dogs will do the job, over there you need to do something serious to prevent bears from getting hives.  They could really use something like what Alan has invented.     

[Acebird]

They could really use something like what Alan has invented.     

I think a better solution is to harvest the bears for dog food.  Just clean them out.

[CoolBees]

They could really use something like what Alan has invented.     

I think a better solution is to harvest the bears for dog food.  Just clean them out.

Dog Food? Let me count the ways that statement is wrong ...

1 - the wholesale slaughter of beautiful animals so that man can "get along a little better" is a morally bankrupt thought process.
2 - that would be a violation of Fish & Game laws, and would bee therefore illegal - and carries hefty prison sentences
3 - properly handled bear meat is some of the BEST meat there is - its identical to pork, except with a dark red color, and exchangeable in any recipe.
4 - It shows complete disregard for the ecological impact (that libs always claim to care about)
5 - it is wanton destruction of God's creation

... and I could go on. I'll thank you not to come near my bears.

[Ben Framed]

Friends I remember a discussion we had a few years ago on the TOPIC: "Bear attacked my hives oh no, please no!!!". A very interesting topic started by Mr. Van, (van from Arkansas), remembering it kind of drifted, or became somewhat 'unfriendly' when "someone" 'suggested' shooting bears with a 22. I fear this potentially controversial suggestion of eliminating bears may once again cause a good topic to lead to confusion. Let's be careful not getting too far off track on this topic. Please help keep it on track and friendly.

Thanks,

Phillip 

[Kathyp]

 
Hate to de(re)rail this to the OP, but the YJ issue is one I have had over the years.  In fact, this is the first year in many that I have not had enough of them around to be a problem

In other years they have killed my hives.  You'd think a strong hive could stand up against them, but they are relentless and once they get in and get the queen, it's all over. 

So yes, in my opinion, YJs are the enemy of the beehive.  I don't have ants around that are anything more than a bother.  Swallows??  They are good for a whole 'nother conversation. 

[CoolBees]

Hate to de(re)rail this to the OP, but the YJ issue is one I have had over the years.  In fact, this is the first year in many that I have not had enough of them around to be a problem

In other years they have killed my hives.  You'd think a strong hive could stand up against them, but they are relentless and once they get in and get the queen, it's all over. 

So yes, in my opinion, YJs are the enemy of the beehive.  I don't have ants around that are anything more than a bother.  Swallows??  They are good for a whole 'nother conversation.

Kathy - you can't derail this thread. I've read your horror stories regarding YJ's. They are no friend of the honey bee. ... I just couldn't think of a "catchy" title, for what I observed. I figured you'd be the least understanding, considering what you've been thru. I definitely don't blame you.

BTW - (I'll derail - you might find this interesting) - I got tired of the store bought disposable YJ traps. Put them right next to the carcass of a ground squirrel that my cats dragged home. The carcass is covered in YJ'S - not one in the trap... so, I cut away the trap bags, leaving just the hard plastic "catch" portion of the trap, got a vacuum seal bag ($0.03 ea from vacmaster), placed some red (ground) meat in it (about 1 tablespoon), and duct-tapped the bag to the "catch" part of the trap and added a 1/4 cup of water. Viola - half a bag of YJ'S in an afternoon. I built and placed 9 of these around, using old traps, changing the bag & meat every 3 days - no YJ's after 7 days. ... very successful.

These were the traps I pulled down once I figured out the YJ'S were eating the ants. Way too many YJ'S down here this year - didn't lose a hive to them thankfully.

[NigelP]

This may or may not be of help to YJ sufferers but here in the UK we do a couple of things. One is to reduce the entrance size right down to 2 or 3 bees widths. I should add we all pretty much use bottom entrances over here.
It makes it easier for the bees to defend against the yellow perils. However, as Kath has said even strong hives can get overwhelmed. In this case we make a tunnel entrance that is about 6 inches long. You need a 6 inch deep plank of wood the same height as your entrance and cut to the same width so it can slide inside to make a new entrance.  Using a chisel etc cut a tunnel about half the height of the wood and about 2-3 bee spaces long. Now the YJ have to negotiate a long tunnel that bees find a lot easier to defend. It also means any getting through end up in the middle of the hive that is also full of bees.
In worst case scenarios even this may not be enough....so we move the hives to another site and pray 

[Acebird]

The bears there, through learning to live around people, have become prolific, bold, and a big problem. 

Alan, I didn't say anything about your bears.  Bears and people don't mix and one way or another the bears will be gone.

[Ben Framed]

The bears there, through learning to live around people, have become prolific, bold, and a big problem. 

Alan, I didn't say anything about your bears.  Bears and people don't mix and one way or another the bears will be gone.

Brian you have some interesting ideas and thoughts about contact of bears and humans. This might be an interesting topic in its own right. Perhaps you might consider starting a new topic in the coffeehouse, discussing your ideas and views of bears and humans in close proximity..

Thanks,

Phillip


I did not have problems with Yellow Jackets this season. It seemed they were scarce in comparison to previous seasons with my bees..

[Kathyp]

placed some red (ground) meat in it (about 1 tablespoon), and duct-tapped the bag to the "catch" part of the trap and added a 1/4 cup of water. Viola - half a bag of YJ'S in an afternoon. I built and placed 9 of these around, using old traps, changing the bag & meat every 3 days - no YJ's after 7 days. ... very successful.

I have tried both the homemade traps using rotten meat, cat food, etc.  For some reason, the ones that work best here are the bag type that are sold commercially.  They seem to be good at getting queens too if I time it right. 

We got lucky this year and they were not bad.  Don't know why and not going to question a good thing   

The only ants we get in the hives are sugar ants.  A PIA, but don't really do much damage unless the hive is going down anyway. 

Using a chisel etc cut a tunnel about half the height of the wood and about 2-3 bee spaces long. Now the YJ have to negotiate a long tunnel that bees find a lot easier to defend. It also means any getting through end up in the middle of the hive that is also full of bees.
In worst case scenarios even this may not be enough....so we move the hives to another site and pray 

This is a really interesting idea.  Worth saving for next year!

[Bill Murray]

kathy I feel for you after what I saw yesterday I have a newfound appreciation for the yellowjacket.

[CoolBees]

kathy I feel for you after what I saw yesterday I have a newfound appreciation for the yellowjacket.

As the OP of this thread - I feel the need to confess - I aquired an apiary site in Norcal last year (much nearer Kathy than where I live - right next to the Oregon border, on the banks of a large river). This year I ran a full-season test on the site, using 12 hives. Lots of Madrone and Blackberries at this location for spring honey. Also thick with surroundimg forests.

I've been watching many YJ'S and Hornets at this location all summer. I did inspections at least every month. In the 1st week of October, inspections revealed nectar coming in, so I opted to wait another month to pull the hives out. ... in the 1st week of November, all hives were dead. No exceptions. Lots of dead dismembered bodies on the bottom boards. Cappings pulled. Honey gone. No wax moths or SHB's. Just empty boxes of comb. I figure YJ's and Hornets.

My sympathies go out to anyone who experiences this ... Kathy. Next year I'll be pulling the hives out after the Blackberries.

[Ben Framed]

Thanks for this Alan and concurring Kathy's warning. I suppose it could happen anywhere if the Yellow Jacket population is strong enough. Sorry for your loss and disappointment my friend. May we all learn from this topic..

Phillip