Swarm Control Swarm Biology

Swarm Traps

Bait Hives

The Easy Way to Get FREE Bees

Swarms • What is in it for You?

• Why are You Beekeeping?

• Why do You want to Catch a Swarm?

• The answer to these questions will define you as a beekeeper. So stop and think about WHY.

Why Swarm Traps?

• Free Bees

• Increase your hive count

• Can sell extra hives for $$$$

• The bees are free to come and go so swarm trap might be a misnomer

Trees

• Where there are trees there will be bees

• Any forest in any setting will give bees the shelter they need

• Bees also consider buildings as trees

Biology of Swarming

• One purpose of all living things is to go forth and multiply. Bees are no different and it doesn’t matter what type they are (Apis M. Meliffera, Apis Dorsata or Apis M. Syriaca). They all want to procreate and keep their species propagating. The difference is often amongst the species of Apis by how aggressive they are in propagating.

Biology of Swarming

• Bee multiply by swarming

• There are two main causes for swarming:

– Overcrowding: The hive is congested and is forced to swarm.

– Reproductive Instinct: The hive has the innate urge to split.

Biology of Swarming

• Overcrowding:

– The hive broods up in spring and becomes too congested to function, so it swarms

Biology of Swarming

• Reproductive Instinct:

– The entire hive, not the queen, decides that there are enough resources – honey, pollen and bees – for the host to survive if part of the hive leaves and enough time for a new hive to establish itself before winter.

Biology of Swarming

• Bees typically swarm only when they have enough resources, most swarming will take place during the honey flow.

• Honey flow is usually in the Spring and again in the Fall.

• Fall swarms are unusual and usually are triggered by overcrowding.

Swarm Impulse

• Queen cups get made

• The Queen deposits eggs in the cups officially making them swarm cells

• Brood nest gets backfilled with honey which is called being honey bound

• A honey flow that is so good that all cells get filled with honey and the queen has no place to lay eggs so the hive swarms

Swarm Impulse

• The hive has chosen to swarm therefore it backfills the broodnest

• Queen will slow down laying eggs

• Workers get the queen slimmed down for flight

• Forager bees become scouts looking for a new home for the swarm

Prime Swarm

• Queen cells are capped

• Bees that will be leaving with the old queen will fill up with honey

• The prime swarm doesn’t wait for the new queen to appear just for the cells to be capped

• This usually occurs eight days after starting queen cells

• The Prime will be largest swarm and will be comprised of young bees and the old queen

Prime Swarm

• When the swarm leaves the donor hive they usually will land on a tree branch

• Scouts will go forth and find a new home

• Scouts must sell their selection to the hive

• Fifteen to twenty scouts visit before final

• Scouts will issue a piping sound around 20HZ

• Traps need to be as close as possible to what a natural selection would be

Donor Hive

• New queens hatch

• The hive decides if strong enough to cast out a second swarm or not

• If not then the new queens will battle to see who will rule and who will die

• If donor hive decides to swarm again then the second swarm is called a “Bull Swarm”

• All other swarms are just called swarms 3rd etc

Swarm Traps

• Swarm traps have been in use for over 7,000 years

• Pheromone lures are new and can triple your catch rate

• Lemon grass also called LGO is a cheap lure

Alternatives to Traps

• Before traps the easiest way to get free bees was to capture a swarm was on a branch

• After all, they were free bees, right? Maybe not

• First, you had to know about the swarm, someone had to call you, text you, email you, or find some other way to let you know about the swarm

Alternatives to Traps

• Lets rethink free:

• Time to get sources to call about swarm

• Time to arrange with owner to pick up swarm

• Time and cost to drive to the swarm site and back. Don’t underestimate the real cost per mile, don’t be fooled that it is just the cost of gas. The amortized wear/tear cost to running a vehicle is around $.52/mile (IRS)

Alternatives to Traps

• Time to pick the swarm up

• Time to drive out again or time spent waiting (if you wait till dark for all the bees to return)

• Adjust missed swarms costs into the successful calls

• Adjust in the time/money of travel to show up and discover someone misidentified yellow jackets for honey bees

Hanging Swarm Trap

• Old wood

• Best size is Langstroth 8 frame deep

• Need frames in trap for easy transfer

• Frames minimize stress on the hive when you move them

• Beekeeper doesn’t have to check as often

• You can purchase a cardboard flower pot shaped swarm trap

Hanging Swarm Trap

• If using the flower pot shape you must get bees out quickly because they will build comb and you will have to do a cutout

• These traps only last one or two seasons and don’t do well in hard weather

• Buy an 8 frame Langstroth hive

Hanging Swarm Trap

• External dimensions don’t matter to bees

• Use old scrap wood

• Internal dimensions should be 19 ¼” x 13” x 10”. You need the frames to fit inside the box

• Drill an entrance hole of 1 ½” to 2” close to bottom

• Nail a couple nails crossed to keep birds out

Hanging Swarm Trap

• 2 ft. hanging board

• Drill ½” hole 2” from top to hang

• Don’t hang a 5 frame nuc because Africanized bees prefer the smaller size cavities

• The top must be screwed on and use screws not nails to put traps together

• Hang traps 8 feet high or less. You shouldn’t need a step ladder

Hanging Swarm Trap

• Trap need to be hung straight to prevent bees from building comb to straighten

• Use large enough nail or bolt to handle the weight of trap, possible 30,000 bees, frames of wax and brood

• Ensure you will be able to remove trap once a swarm has moved in

Baiting Traps

• Old method

– Trap should be 12 ft. off ground

– Should have old comb in it

• New method

– 20 years ago they did a bee analysis of bee pheromones

– Bees communicate with different pheromones and they can be synthetically duplicated

Baiting Traps

• Can now put pheromones in traps and expect a 30% occupancy chance instead of 5% old

• Big one for swarm trappers in the Nasanov pheromone which smells like Lemons.

• Lemon grass oil has the same compound and is CHEAP

• The pheromones effectiveness will decline throughout the season

Baiting Traps

• If you use Lemon grass oil put 8 drops on a clean napkin/paper towel

• Put in a small Ziploc bag and seal, place in corner of trap and open one small hole

• When you check the trap put a small drop on your finger and rub around hole

• Do not put on frames and not more than 10 drops max

Baiting Traps

• Commercial lures

– Expensive

– Only last a few months

– Most contain lemon grass oil

• Use a piece of old comb with the lemon grass oil

• Black comb is recommended over white because it has more odor

Baiting Traps

• If you don’t have black comb just use yellow. The lemon grass oil is doing 70% of the attracting and with black comb you might get a 10% boost

• Put the old burr comb in one of the frames to give the bees a guide

• Best trap would be one that has caught a swarm

Baiting Traps

• QMP – Queen Manibular Pheromone

• QMP is just alcohol the old queen has been dropped into thereby transfusing her sent

• Alternative to lemon grass oil and commercial lures

• CANNOT be used together

• Lemon grass oil is still cheaper, easier to get and will last longer

•

Time for Swarms

• Build in winter,

• Set out weeks before earliest swarms in your area have been reported, I put them out 3rd week of Feb.

• Pick up all traps one month after last known swarm for your area, 1st week Oct

• Bad idea to leave up all year, bugs, wasp, ants and two legged creatures called teenagers

Safety

• There are chances you might catch a swarm of Africanized or aggressive European bees

• They don’t get nasty until they build in size around 6 to 8 frames of brood. If nasty requeen as soon as possible.

• Ladders

– If stung on a ladder there in no place to go but down so suit up

Checking

Checking

• Daily checking must be done with paper trap

• Old type you only need to check twice a month

• If you notice wasps coming out of trap you must take down and clean

• Don’t use chemical spray

• Bees don’t like wasp either

Removal Methods

• Confirm that you have a swarm not scouts

• Scouts – scouts and foragers – forage but never scout. Check to see pollen coming in

• Plug hole and move to perm location

• Do not leave hive plugged up and in hot sun

Retrieving a Swarm

Hiving a Swarm

Job Done