Small hive beetles

[FredBorn]

At what point do you start treating for small hive beetles. When I worked my hives this aftrnoon 3 of the 4 hives had 4 or 5 (that I saw and killed)small hive beetles - which is kinda normal for me. One hive however had 20 + (that I saw and killed).

I've been trying to stay away from serious chemicals (only been using powdered suger and  food grade mineral oil for mites).

At what point do the number of shb pose a serios problem to the hive. The hive is well populated and seems to be doing well otherwise.

I resently bought a small hive beetle trap from dadant to see if they would work -  put it one the first hive I worked today - which only had a few beetles - unfortuately the hive with the really bad beetles was the last one I worked and I already had the trap set up on the other hive.

Any ideas would be appreciated.

fred citrus county Florida

[Robo]

Fred,

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending how you look at it,  we don't have any members with SHB experience here.  Or at least non that have spoken up.  

I don't have any experience, but it is my understanding that the beetles destroy the comb and frames.  Did you notice any damage in the hive?

I for one would be interested in hearing how well the SHB trap works.  I know it seems labor intensive and probably impratical form someone with many hives.  But it does perhaps offer a non-pesticide solution for the hobbyist.  

Please keep us informed of how things go.

[Phoenix]

Unfortunately, I just discovered the other day that my weak hive is infested with SHB.  I picked up a trap today and plan on installing it tomorrow, I hope it takes care of the problem before they spread to my other hives.

[Robo]

Phoenix,

How horrible.  Do you have any idea of how you got them?  Seems like you are quite far North.  Did you start with package bees?  I have heard accounts of people getting infested with SHB that came in package bees.

[Phoenix]

Robo,

This hive happened to be a split from a hive that has wintered 3 seasons here with no medication.  They happened to swarm six weeks after I got them, leaving it queenless, and greatly reducing it's strength.  

I called Dadant in our area and they told me SHB were prevelant here in Michigan.

[Robo]

I called Dadant in our area and they told me SHB were prevelant here in Michigan.

Yikes!   I guess it is not just a southern thing anymore.  I guess this just reassures my decision on not introducing any packages or purchased hives/nucs into my apiary.  I'm hoping to be able to stick to swarms and splits and delay them as long as possible.

Here is a good article for those like me who don't really know much about SHB.
http://creatures.ifas.ufl.edu/misc/bees/small_hive_beetle.htm

[Phoenix]

Thanks for the link Robo.

[Guest]

Fred
The beetles by themselves are not necessarily a cause for alarm. A small hive beetle will sometimes visit a hive, stay a short while, and leave(without mating) even if there are other beetles in that hive. The same beetle will enter another hive and stay. The larvae are the stage that causes the damage. If your bees are attempting to remove the larvae (you see very small larvae on the bottom board) (and you get rid of them)- things are good. If you open the hive and see frames that the bees won't touch (because of the beetle larvae slime) - clean the frames with a water spray and the bees will attempt to reclaim them. I've had hives with 100 beetles and no damage and hives with no (that I can find) beetles - and the slimy mess that the bees won't touch. - remember - your intervention is what causes the mating. Strong hives and screened bottom boards forever!  
Mike in Key Largo

[Bee Boy]

I read on the Illinois Department of Agriculture that SHB has been found in isolated pockets of Illinois. The site also said that they are now in 24 states

Here's the link to the IDA site:

www.agr.state.il.us/


Just go under the catagory that says bees and apiarys


Good site Robo! It was very informative