# Do small hive beetles come back up through ssb? Should screen be for mite drop only?



## Tazcan (Mar 25, 2012)

They can fly and they know where the hive is if they are removed.
I learned this when i was changing out old boxes.
removed all the frames and placed them in the new box.
took the box about 100 feet from the hive , the bees continued to keep the beetles in their cracks and crevasses, as the bees left to go back to the hive i noticed the beetles were flying back to the hive also but the bees were keeping them at bay.
My colony was new and now it is bigger and stronger, when i did a check a month later there were a few SHB in the traps but i did not see any in the hive itself i basically took away most of their hiding places.
This is what my old box top looked like when i purchased it.








I do not know what the scientific name for the SHB is but i have seen them all my life here, they live in the woods under logs and such, heck i can turn over a feeder and they are under it, basically they are everywhere here and were long before i got my bees.

I do not know anything about screen bottoms, i would be afraid the ***** and skunks would tear my hives up if they got a wiff of whats inside via the screen bottom.


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## rrfunnyfarm (Apr 22, 2012)

I have a hive with a Miller Bee Supply SBB on it. The 3 SHB that I found yesterday could not drop through it but I'm assuming they were small enough to climb up through it a few days ago. I managed to squish 2 and enjoyed watching the bees attach the other to the box with propolis.

My other hive has a homemade SBB with aluminum window screen. Seems cleaner inside the hive even though it's probably not the 'correct' screen material.


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## casinoken (May 6, 2012)

I use the screened bottom board with SHB trap from Rossman. I love it. I won't put up a hive without one. SHB simply fall to their death. Great product!


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## RobWok (May 18, 2011)

I use oil trays in mine. They check in, but they don't check out. The oil is also a good indication of how bad the beetles are. I just wish I was better about changing out the oil. What usually happens is that when there is a large uptake in population, the cappings end up in the tray, soak up the oil, and it's then dry enough for the beetles to get back out, but fortunately, it's still too much for the larva in most cases.


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