Holy Propolis Batman

[KeyLargoBees]

Finally going to move the Owl Box this evening....and I got up close and personal as I rigged some straps and and supports to lower it gently once I cage them in after sunset. The top entrance is a 3" diameter hole and it is totally propolized except for 5-6 small holes. The work that went into that gives me some sense that this is at least 2 years old as stated by the owners.

On the other photo you can see a "side view"...the built little propolis buttresses between the front of the box and the top.....so cool... almost a shame to  tear it open and move them to a new home.

[Blacksheep]

Good luck and I hope they like the new home!Give them a treat !Some nice sugar water!

[D Coates]

They've been there a few years.  Take lots of photos and I wish you the best of luck.  That metal entrance is for what?  To ensure other things can't gnaw the opening into something larger?  I'm looking out over snow wishing I was in your shoes.... 

[KeyLargoBees]

Well that was an adventure....covered the hole and the bottom seam and they were so gentle....had a few outside and I very gently smoked them back in and they marched in like well behaved ladies....but unscrewing the box from the trees and dropping the box gently caused the seams split in several places...the box is much more rotted than it first appears...it was a race against the clock to stuff burlap(smoker fuel) into the new cracks before more bees escaped. Still gentle and they are in their new home with the stragglers on the outside of the screen.

Nice cool weather for the next few days....going to leave them on lock-down and then throw some brush in front and release them on Friday  or Saturday morning.

[GSF]

Key, Do bees store propolis? If that's what it is then it would suggest so. Good catch.

[KeyLargoBees]

I don't think they store it per se....its just a really big hole from a bees perspective and that's more propolis in one place than i'v ever seen. I have seen it used to fill in  in cracks and crevices...but its a matter of scale....for them to fill in a three inch gap to make the entrance fit their needs is the work of years :-)

Going to be very interesting to see whats INSIDE the box when I cut it up and move them into their permanent home in a few weeks. Going to try and save the "plug" in one piece and get better photos once its out.

[Michael Bush]

That is how propolis got it's name.  Pro=before polis=city.  It means in front of the city.

[Colobee]

I've had a few hives almost entirely block off a 3/4" high by hive width entrance (full open) in a single fall, when I didn't get the reducers on early enough for them. Some hives just gather lots of propolis - it's a tendency ascribed to Carni's. I had one of these this winter.

My Italians ( Buckfast) often "re-work" propolis from stray hive parts but I'm not sure how much they store it. Most of my hives seem to gather just what they need to seal things up & glue things down. I've found miscellaneous "gobs" in a few hives - suggesting that some colonies might store some surplus.

[BeeMaster2]

Nice pictures Jeff.
If you have them sealed up provide a water source. A wet sponge will help.
I would wait until a good flow starts before you tear it open, Just hang it on a wall. add a ratchet strap to keep it together if it needs it.
The metal is to stop the squirrels from gnawling the opening larger. I have a few swarm traps that have been chewed open by them.
Bees use propolis to seal up the hive, usually they seal the wood inside of the tree they live in.
Jim

[KeyLargoBees]

They broke free yesterday afternoon...must have discovered a crack in this crappy rotten box right as the sun was going down so I had a beard of bees outside the box. I couldnt even see the crack for the bees. Piled brush and small limbs all around it and will hope for reorientation and fully open them on Friday and hope for the best....really gentle bees was prodding them in their cluster to try and see the crack and they were so docile it made me smile.

[BeeMaster2]

Jeff,
If you put them in a totally different location, you really do not need the brush, especially if you are more than 2 miles from original location.
Bee sure to keep the box in the original orientation until you do the cut out.
Jim

[KeyLargoBees]

They are in a new location but only about a half mile away. They created a new "entrance" yesterday from a seam on the box that split....so some were out yesterday but i removed the screens  today to allow the rest out with the brush to force more thorough orientation in hopes that a minimal number will find their way back to their original hive site....a little concerned because they immediately started carting out dead almost hatched pupae...must have been some comb damage in the hive from the move.....in any event all I can do is monitor the situation until I can do the cutout in a week or two.

[BeeMaster2]

I would not worry about a few dead larva. May even bee drones they do not want to feed. If they were hauling a lot of dead bees then you may bee concerned about the health of the queen.
Keep us informed on how it works out.
Jim

[D Coates]

They are in a new location but only about a half mile away.

No problem.  I believe the 2 miles rule is a wives tail.  When a tree falls with a hive in it the bees always figure out where she is doesn't she?  I've moved bees 5" to a well over mile away and they always figure out where their queen/hive is.  Beyond that though?  Nope, any workers left behind are lost and will cluster where the hive used to be.  The smell of the queen always draws them home if it's within a couple miles.  There'll be a bit of confusion as they look for her but it settles down within a day.  Move the hive in the morning and they'll be settled by nightfall.  Please take photos when you crack that open!  That's going to be cool to see.

[mtnb]

Wohoo. Awesome Jeff.

[KeyLargoBees]

Photos and a link to a video I posted on You Tube over in the Removal forum if any are interested in seeing this post cutout