First Trap out

jaseemtp · April 29, 2011, 12:29:05 AM

So Im wondering how successful I will be. I had a frantic call about a hive in a very large oak tree. I can not cut the tree down and found only one entrance / exit to the hive. I put up a screen cone and set a 5 frame nuc box next to the end of the cone. Now be mindful this is about 10 feet off the ground so it was a bit of a challenge to get this all together. I do not have any brood / eggs to spare to put in this nuc. I did have some old comb from a cut out and the rest of the frames have foundation on them. I recieved a call from the land owner stating that there were thousands of bees outside the cone but she was to afraid to get to close to look at the box to see if they were going in. Suggestions? It has been about 8 hours since set up till the phone call.

Michael Bush · April 29, 2011, 01:26:57 AM

My experience is the home owner usually freaks out because of all the flying bees who can't find their way in and the cluster of bees outside and sprays them and I've wasted my time.

My preference for a trap out is to go brush or vacuum (preferably brush) the bees into a box and take them back to my apiary and dump them in front of the hives. That way I lessen the "fear factor" by removing some of them and I get some bees out of it. I seldom get anything else from a trap out anyway.

iddee · April 29, 2011, 07:03:45 AM

If you want success, use a frame of brood with eggs. Otherwise, you only have a confused bunch of bees with no place to go.

Tommyt · April 29, 2011, 07:40:20 AM

Put the box near the base of the cone not the exit
As the king of trapout said you need Brood and eggs
I have not tried a queen I think Hardwood did but
Don't know maybe he'll chime in

Tommyt

jaseemtp · April 29, 2011, 08:33:45 AM

I just started keeping bees this year and my new hives need the brood/eggs, so I do not feel I can spare them to get the trapout bees ya know. Would old comb help? I have some from a removal I did a week or so ago.

iddee · April 29, 2011, 08:57:58 AM

Cut a 2 inch square containing eggs out and place it in an old drawn comb. Your new hive can give up that amount. In a trap out, you will not get the queen and they must have eggs to raise a new one. Or, place a frame in the trap,. wait 5 days, remove it and cut the queen cells out. Replace the frame back in your old hive and the queen cells in the trap box.

hardwood · April 29, 2011, 09:18:54 AM

Ditto on what iddee and Tommy are saying.

Scott

JP · April 29, 2011, 09:52:46 AM

Bud3-Annual Beemaster Gathering-Trap Out Demonstration - Mobile.m4v

Watch this video above to the end.

You really need to take our advice or reap the consequences, which BTW most likely will not be what you are looking for and quite possibly put your customer in eminent danger.

Homeless bees can be very angry bees!

Do the trap out according to the advice given or you will wind up with angry homeless, queenless bees.

If you do not want to give them the resources they need to make new queens and do the trap out properly by all means either abandon the project or pull in someone experienced you can learn from.

If I'm sounding harsh, I'm just concerned and want you and your customer to have a happy experience and the bees to be happy living out their remaining days.

Best of luck!

...JP

jaseemtp · April 29, 2011, 11:29:05 AM

JP it is not that im not wanting to take y'alls advise. The reason I posted here was to get an "expert" opinion and suggestions what I needed to do. I just didnt belive I had the resouces to spare by taking brood away from hives there are a month old or less.
Iddees suggestion of taking a two inch square deff sounds doable and I will get that done here in a bit after it warms up some more. I do appreciate everyones input and am thankful for it. I will keep y'all updated on how it goes.
Jason

oliver · April 29, 2011, 12:58:13 PM

very good video demonstration, this case a picture is worth a million words..thanks dl

jaseemtp · April 29, 2011, 10:14:43 PM

Sooo I got very lucky today. I went and did a cut out and they bees had tons of brood/eggs. I ended up with 8 medium frames of brood/eggs and 4 frames of honey/ syrup/ pollen. I took on of these frames of brood/eggs to my trap out and WOW. The bees just started going right in, like within moments of me replaceing the trap out box near them.
I have to say it was amazing, I was up on the ladder took the frame of brood/eggs out and while I was taking the trap down the bees immediatly began landing on the frame of brood/eggs. I also added a very old piece of comb from a cut out earlier. Thanks for the help y'all I do appreciate it. Im hopeful the bees will be in the box tomorrow and I can take them home.
Jason

iddee · April 30, 2011, 12:12:59 AM

If you set the trap on Apr. 28, you can take them home approx. June 28. New bees will be emerging from their cells for a minimum of 4 weeks, maybe longer.7 to 8 weeks is the norm for a trap. Some a bit less, some more.

jaseemtp · April 30, 2011, 03:07:15 AM

after the process get started and the box fills up with bees and I need / want to take those bees home. Do I need to continue giving the trap box a frame of eggs / brood? Or does the bees from the tree reconginize the bees in the box as sisters?

Tommyt · April 30, 2011, 09:18:37 AM

Watch the video,the reason you leave the eggs is so they can make a Queen cell (Queen)
She will emerge and go in her mating Flight(s)you now will have a colony
If you take the box away you may loose the queen if she is off mating #2 if you get it all before she is born
you have a small colony,
#3 after she has mated and returned small colony
If you do the above what is going to happen to all the bee's leaving your Cone??
You will have to do this over again?? I guess its your choice
If you remove replace with Eggs just like before

Tommyt

jaseemtp · May 01, 2011, 12:45:26 AM

I was just not sure how many bees are in the tree. I am using a 5 frame nuc box for them to go to. Im afraid they would fill it up pretty quick but guess I could just bring empty frames with and bring frames of bees home a few at a time minus the queen.

Tommyt · May 01, 2011, 08:30:56 AM

jaseemtp
Look here http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,27006.0.html
maybe you can build a quick Nuc, with no bottom and add to your trap out
To keep the box square and rigid, I added two small pieces of 3/8 plywood
on the inside bottom it worked fine.
I don't know if its in the link I posted has it,but I made my box's too accommodate
med frames not Deeps,My trapouts end up as 2, 5 frame med box's
Its all fun

Tommyt

jaseemtp · May 01, 2011, 02:40:05 PM

Thanks for the link Tommy, I have made several of them already and that is what I am using for my trap out box. Im just worried it may be large enough to accomadate all the bees in that tree. Again thanks for all the help y'all I do appreciate it.
Jason

vabeeman · May 05, 2011, 10:14:55 AM

i put a box up tuesday just as the video says to do checked it yesterday there already building new comb i put a fram of eggs and brood .i was shocked at how well its working the man knows what hes doing thanks for the post ....................... donnie

mjb1 · May 05, 2011, 09:00:57 PM

nice video I may use that one day if I have the opportunity
Thanks Mel

wadehump · May 05, 2011, 10:42:25 PM

Have you ever heard the story about the WISE OLD OWL. Well i look at it like this if IDDEE , BUD1 , BJORNBEE , HARDWOOD , JP, AND YES EVEN SCHAWEE give advice on this forum it would be a good idea to head that and listen to them they sure have helped me and a lot of other beeks on this fourm and others. im soory if i missed other expirenced beeks on here this was just to name a few of a lot :-D