Capturing robber bees

Bellavista2 · November 11, 2016, 03:48:07 PM

I have a hive with a very small cluster in it. A new queen this fall and their in a med box. I cut the entrance down to 1/2 inch but still have robbers going in. I also put a piece of Styrofoam across and reduced the medium box down to 6 frames. Someone mentioned closing off the entrance completely for a couple of days should this be done at nite or if is done in the daytime will the robbers assimilate with the resident bees and add strength to the cluster. How about if I put another extracted frame of honey in there and lock op a whole bunch of bees most likely from my other strong hive. Will they get along ?

iddee · November 11, 2016, 05:44:42 PM

I have locked in robbers and had them take up with the hive and strengthen it, but it takes a few days, so you have to move it 5 mile or more away so they don't go back home. Then you can bring it back in a week or two and all will be fine.

Bellavista2 · November 11, 2016, 10:05:49 PM

Thank you so much iddee for your insight what have I got to loose if they keep robbing I'm going to run out of frames with honey to feed the cluster.

BeeMaster2 · November 11, 2016, 11:22:48 PM

I'm suppressed you haven't lost your queen.
It is usually the first thing they do to take the fight out of the hive.
Jim

yes2matt · November 12, 2016, 12:58:06 PM

Quote from: sawdstmakr on November 11, 2016, 11:22:48 PM
I'm suppressed you haven't lost your queen.
It is usually the first thing they do to take the fight out of the hive.
Jim

!!!?

I betcha that's what happened to my Q 6 weeks ago! Wow, I didn't have a clue, I thought maybe I rolled her. Thanks.

little john · November 12, 2016, 02:32:23 PM

Quote from: Bellavista2 on November 11, 2016, 03:48:07 PM
Someone mentioned closing off the entrance completely for a couple of days should this be done at nite [...]

Locking-up the victimised colony (best done at night) is one way of breaking the robbing cycle, which can be very persistent indeed. And once the box is sealed (with ventilation of course), it can then be moved well away, so that the robbers will find nothing there of interest next morning. That will effectively kill the robbing impulse within an hour or two - BUT - you really need a better long term solution than this, for when you return that colony to it's original site, it (robbing) stands a pretty good chance of starting-up again, unless ...

To my mind, nothing beats a mesh anti-robbing screen. There are plenty of good, yet simple designs floating around on the Internet. Don't be tempted by wet sheets or panes of glass - mesh is the stuff that works. And - when it comes to robbing - prevention is a hundred times better than cure, so putting a screen in place over the entrance of a small colony 'from day one' is the best possible insurance.
LJ

Bellavista2 · November 12, 2016, 02:41:58 PM

I'm hopeful that this young queen can pull it off and survive if not I've wasted a bunch of time beating off the yellowjackets and robber bees. It rained last night so I closed up the entrance this morning . If the robbing continues in a couple of days its Hotel California time for the robbers. I guess I would use the newspaper between the boxes method and add a medium box till they get acquainted. Thanks Little John you responded as I was typing. I will be looking into the screen asap.