robbing

10framer · July 29, 2014, 11:55:32 PM

I waited until about an hour before sunset and put my supers back on the hives that needed them and by the time i was on the third hive i realized that there was serious robbing going on on the other two. i guess i should have waited a bit later. i went ahead and supered all the hives that i thought were strong enough to defend themselves and reduced the entrances. hopefully they'll have the combs cleaned by morning. i've never seen robbing like this before. in a matter of minutes it looked like swarms were trying to settle into the hives. i also saw that i have some hives that are almost completely out of honey and full of brood.
interestingly, after going though about a dozen hives i only saw one hive beetle and it's sleeping the big sleep now.
if you're in the south and you pulled honey you may want to check to see if your bees are about to starve. i thought i might pull more this weekend and i could from a couple of hives but i'm just going to sit this out until the fall flows start up.
i can't believe i may have to feed in july.

BeeMaster2 · July 30, 2014, 12:33:08 AM

10framer,
Instead of feeding, move some of that honey around to the hives that need it. Just bee sure to not give them more frames than they can defend.
Jim

10framer · July 30, 2014, 12:57:52 AM

jim, i'm going to try to tough it out for a few more days. we've hit a dry spell and the sumac has been budding up for over a week. from what i've read it likes hot dry days so i'm hoping it will pop open before the weekend.

BeeMaster2 · July 30, 2014, 12:22:21 PM

Quote from: 10framer on July 30, 2014, 12:57:52 AM
jim, i'm going to try to tough it out for a few more days. we've hit a dry spell and the sumac has been budding up for over a week. from what i've read it likes hot dry days so i'm hoping it will pop open before the weekend.

Sounds like a good plan.
Jim

GSF · July 30, 2014, 12:46:23 PM

I've had a serious robbing incident recently as well. I went through all my hives last Friday and Saturday. Pulled some honey. Sunday before going to church I saw bees all over one hive. It was a hive that at the first of the month I made notes that it had a new queen that just started laying but no brood of any sort. Well something went a rye. When I opened it up it had about a palm size spot in two places - of drone cells. No laying workers.

I closed they entrance up completely but somehow they moved the blocks of 1x1's out of the way and got to it anyhow. So I went in. If I remember right they had took about 3 or 4 frames out of 5 capped honey. Then yesterday it seemed they were trying to rob a nuc. I figured it was the nasty mean hive - the one that stung me 5 or 6 times through the suit and 3 times through the gloves.

Just to be sure I took some self rising flour and start throwing it on them as they left the hive. Turns out it was the two nucs side by side of them. No white bees returning to the nasty hive. I reduced the entrances to about a half inch or less. That seemed to solve the problem for the nuc. Unfortunately the other one was robbed out. Time to feed them. I bet there was 2-3 hundred bees killed in the two day period.

BeeMaster2 · July 30, 2014, 12:54:55 PM

Quote from: GSF on July 30, 2014, 12:46:23 PM
I've had a serious robbing incident recently as well. I went through all my hives last Friday and Saturday. Pulled some honey. Sunday before going to church I saw bees all over one hive. It was a hive that at the first of the month I made notes that it had a new queen that just started laying but no brood of any sort. Well something went a rye. When I opened it up it had about a palm size spot in two places - of drone cells. No laying workers.

I closed they entrance up completely but somehow they moved the blocks of 1x1's out of the way and got to it anyhow. So I went in. If I remember right they had took about 3 or 4 frames out of 5 capped honey. Then yesterday it seemed they were trying to rob a nuc. I figured it was the nasty mean hive - the one that stung me 5 or 6 times through the suit and 3 times through the gloves.

Just to be sure I took some self rising flour and start throwing it on them as they left the hive. Turns out it was the two nucs side by side of them. No white bees returning to the nasty hive. I reduced the entrances to about a half inch or less. That seemed to solve the problem for the nuc. Unfortunately the other one was robbed out. Time to feed them. I bet there was 2-3 hundred bees killed in the two day period.

Gary,
You will need to check that hive to see if the queen survived. often times, if the home bees do not ball the queen to protect her, the robbers will kill her if they can to demoralize the hive and make it easier to rob.
Problem is, right now is a bad time to be in the hive because you can and will cause robbing. If a flow starts up soon you might want to inspect that hive then.
Jim

GSF · July 30, 2014, 01:45:47 PM

Thanks Jim, I first took notice of the eggs on July 9th. After not seeing any eggs/larva, ect, after that period of time I take she's not there.

biggraham610 · July 30, 2014, 03:15:58 PM

Yeah, I had to deal with a bout of robbing earlier, and it was like you said, a swarm. within seconds of closing the entrance to a bee width, the front of the hive was covered. Like major bearding. I caught it early, everyone is leaving each other alone now and bringing in pollen and some nectar. Not sure what they are finding it on but alot are coming in slow and heavy. G :chop:

10framer · July 31, 2014, 10:18:15 AM

everything was fine the next morning. i have one queenless hive. if it gets' cool again tonight i'm going to do a newspaper combine with a small swarm i caught back in may.

capt44 · July 31, 2014, 10:31:11 AM

I am feeding my beeyards with 5 gallon buckets of sugar syrup.
I also keep on hand robbing screens I make out of #8 hardware cloth.
Here's a picture of the robbing screen, it's simple and works.

BeeMaster2 · July 31, 2014, 12:07:45 PM

Quote from: capt44 on July 31, 2014, 10:31:11 AM
I am feeding my beeyards with 5 gallon buckets of sugar syrup.
I also keep on hand robbing screens I make out of #8 hardware cloth.
Here's a picture of the robbing screen, it's simple and works.

Thanks Capt.
I like that. Is that one for a nuc?
Jim

biggraham610 · July 31, 2014, 02:28:41 PM

so thats it huh for the robber screen. Nice to know. so both ends stay open? do you still reduce the entrance down too? Thanks. G

GSF · July 31, 2014, 03:05:23 PM

Hey B, I'm gonna try to answer that but Cap will have to clarify things: I'd imagine it's about a bee width more narrow than the open, or it covers it completely that way they have air flow and protection.

tefer2 · July 31, 2014, 08:56:06 PM

capt will have to post a pic of one on the hive.
I'm pretty sure the ends are left wide open.
Robbers, zero in on the hive smell in the front.
It is amazing something that butt simple can work so well.

Michael Bush · August 02, 2014, 12:30:00 PM

http://bushfarms.com/beesrobbing.htm