# 2011 spring inspection



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

Since it is 77° today, I went out and checked on my two hives. While I was lighting the smoker, my wife yelled "a mouse just came out of the entrance!"
I looked closer and saw where the bottom of the hive body had been chewed just enough for the little critter.

This hive had the cluster in the 3rd of 4 chambers. Good size cluster with brood in all stages. Bees were working some comb in the 4th. Bottom chamber was totally filled with the nest. All combs shot. Definite signs in the 2nd chamber that brood was being reared and then all died. Most likely weather related. Reversed chambers, put bees on bottom.

Hive 2 was positioned the same way. Same brood conditions, saw queen. Same dead brood in lower chamber. No mouse nest, but did see signs of chewing at front entrance. Will have to use metal entrance reducers from now on. Lots of field mice around.

Both hives have good amounts of pollen coming in.


----------



## Solomon Parker (Dec 21, 2002)

Time for upper entrances eh? 

I too had some of what appeared to be cold killed brood. I thought it might have been from a skunk eating a bunch of the bees. It was certainly the case for the most punished hive. It was unusual at any rate.

I haven't had a nest in a live hive, but winter a year ago, I had a mouse go through and chew out the crescent of honey over the brood area on quite a few frames. The bees repaired it, but not as pretty as it was before.

I like your hive paint.


----------



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

It was strange. Never seen anything like it before. There was seal brood, emerging brood, open brood, bees head first in cells. Like they hit a wall and the remaining cluster moved on up to the next chamber, where I found them.


----------



## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

Where I am now winters are mild the bees don't form a "hard" cluster, I winter bees in two deeps so no need for mouse guards. But when I worked in a colder part of our country mouse gaurds were pretty much mandatory or the result would be just like yours Barry, amazing how much damage 3 or 4 little critters can do. And that would be in a 2 box hive.

Surprising the other types of critters we found living in hives sometimes, and the mummified remains that bees had preserved and propolised!

Re the chilled brood, yes that's a function of bees coming out of the winter cluster, expanding, then getting caught. More so in breeds like italians that will throw caution to the wind and go for it. There are some health factors that will exacerbate this.


----------



## MDS (Jan 9, 2011)

Oldtimer said:


> Where I am now winters are mild the bees don't form a "hard" cluster, I winter bees in two deeps so no need for mouse guards.


Why no mouse guards in a two deep? I have cats so no issue here, but very interested in an explanation.

Mark


----------



## NasalSponge (Jul 22, 2008)

Winters are mild (mice not needing a warm place to live) Do not form a hard cluster (bee's active enough to sting mice)


----------



## NasalSponge (Jul 22, 2008)

I just cleaned up several frames with mice damage...nasty little buggers!! Never seen a nest that big though!!inch:


----------



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

It pretty much filled 3/4ths of the bottom medium and all the comb was gone. I blocked the front entrances late fall with a 2x4 (all I had on the truck) and just left an 1-1/2 open at the end. Guess where the hive body was chewed. I've never had hives out on the edge of fields before, so I'll have to take more precautions.

Oldtimer, that's what I figured had happened with the carnage in the 2nd chamber. We've had some crazy weather here this year, as a lot are having all over. Had a real nice warm up early then got hit with a cold snap.


----------



## Bee Bliss (Jun 9, 2010)

Barry,

Didn't some guy on this forum post a story with a picture of a snake that he found when he took the tele. lid off??

You may be interested in this.....Take a 5 gallon pail and fill it 3/4 full of water. Place a plank leading up from the ground and resting on the top of the pail. Place sunflower seeds on the water and a few at the top of the plank. The seeds float until they get waterlogged. The mice jump in and drown. Works for other rodents also.

I think maybe something should be able to be placed in the water that barely floats and keeps the sunflower seeds dry so they don't sink. Maybe a plastic yogurt lid. Check your pail often enough.

Another idea, leave the pail dry and put sunflower seeds on the bottom, but put a peanut butter baited mouse trap in there.


----------



## cg3 (Jan 16, 2011)

Bee Bliss said:


> .Take a 5 gallon pail and fill it 3/4 full of water. Place a plank leading up from the ground and resting on the top of the pail. .


Then stretch a newspaper across the top, tied off with string. Bait with seeds for several days until it's obvious there is nightly feeding. Slit the paper. Next morning dump out corpses. Gets the whole family at once.


----------



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

Now that the bees aren't clustering, I think they will do just fine keeping four legged pests out. I'll be putting metal guards on this fall. I've got acres and acres of field all around. No bucket big enough to hold all the mice!


----------



## Roland (Dec 14, 2008)

Metal mouse guards are standard operating procedure in Wisconsin. With your extra boxes, I can understand a greater problem.

Crazy Roland


----------



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

What style do you use Roland?


----------



## Beeslave (Feb 6, 2009)

I see dysentary(bee runs) issues. Possibly nosema related. During a previous warm spell the sick bees(more than likely house bees cleaning up the dysentary) flew out to die from only beeing strong enough to "fly the coop" and die away from the hive. Nosema sick bees will fly out at colder temps and die when they become chilled. Now you have half the bees to cover brood that was already there.

Now this is just a guess. 2 seasons I have purposely used 2 hives that 3 seasons(springs) ago had serious dysentary and died. I never treated them for anything other than mites. This spring is the third spring that had the same results. Strong bees come feb. Warm spell comes.....crap all over the hives again.......sudden population crash.......chilled brood....full frames......plenty of honey...........1 out of those 2 left alive today that is 2 1/2 frames of bees.

Another hive of my daughters was all new frames and foundation last spring. Today in WI after overwintering here they have no dysentary sign and have a shallow on top packed with bees.....a deep beneath that packed with bees....and the bottom deep has bees a third of the way down.

I overwinter a few hives just to do it. Everything else goes to CA for the winter.


----------



## Omie (Nov 10, 2009)

You have to be careful about setting traps out in the open. Other animals can get killed in them that would be a shame. Birds will definitely go after sunflower seeds and how would you feel about finding a dead songbird in your bucket with its leg in the mousetrap? 
I was once mopping an outside deck and my phone rang. I went inside and talked for 5 minutes. When I came back out I found a dead bluebird in the bucket of soapy water. I felt _so bad_, and I learned my lesson.
When I have mice or voles in my veg garden, i put out mousetraps with peanut butter, but _I hide them underneath the bushy leaves_ of beets, lettuce, or bush beans. The birds never go under the leaves and i get the mice and voles pretty quickly because they like to run around under the leaves.

Barry, I have used the metal mouse guards and I hear you can just staple some 1/2" hardware cloth over the entrance too. We have cold winters and lots of mice looking for cozy places to winter.


----------



## Oldtimer (Jul 4, 2010)

MDS said:


> Why no mouse guards in a two deep? I have cats so no issue here, but very interested in an explanation.


Well just because the hives go through winter quite strong in this area and have brood 12 months of the year, too many bees for mice to get a foothold.

I should have said though that entrance guards might get used for some reasons, during the fall robbing season weak hives will get one. I've put a pic below of what I use, the entrance is 4 inches long and just under 3/8 high. This format is much better then a block of wood with the entrance at one end, because it's much easier for a weak hive to defend, than an entrance at the edge of the bottom board.

You do get the occasional entrance guard gnawed at a bit by mice but I don't think i've ever seen one actually get all the way through. However metal would solve this permanently. I don't like the metal entrance guards with holes all the way along though, much harder for the bees to defend if they are down on numbers.


----------



## Roland (Dec 14, 2008)

Barry - we use mouse guards that where made by my Grandfather in the 40's and 50's. PM me your address, and I will send one your way.

Crazy Roland


----------



## northbee (Apr 16, 2009)

In regards to mouse guards I use a piece of 1/2" hardware cloth cut the same width as the bottom board. I fold it into a wedge and shove it into the entrance in the fall. Have not had a problem with mice since I started using this. 

best, Yuuki


----------



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

Glad to hear this. I was thinking about doing this as it is simple and cheap. Plus I don't have to use any fasteners. :thumbsup:


----------



## Acebird (Mar 17, 2011)

I made mine out of some stainless steel angels that I welded together. We have cats that bring in voles on a daily basis but I wouldn’t go without a guard in the winter.


----------



## MDS (Jan 9, 2011)

NasalSponge said:


> Winters are mild (mice not needing a warm place to live) Do not form a hard cluster (bee's active enough to sting mice)


Makes since. Thanks


----------



## Omie (Nov 10, 2009)

Hey Barry, did you consider using that mouse bedding nest as a lure in a bumblebee nesting box? Mouse nest to a bumblebee is like lemongrass to a honeybee scout! :thumbsup:
Maybe you could even sell used mouse nests on Ebay to bumle enthusists! (I'm not kidding, might be able to get $5 a piece for them)


----------



## Tool (Apr 26, 2011)

I get a ton of field mice around my place. I have my hives on a stand 24" of the ground to keep them above all the pests around. We also get more than our share of cats and skunks. I only in the 2nd year, but have no signs of intuders at all. I think that I have got 20+ mice that tried to winter over in the garage, but they have left the bees alone. 

How high up is the "infested" hive?


----------



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

Omie said:


> Hey Barry, did you consider using that mouse bedding nest as a lure in a bumblebee nesting box? Mouse nest to a bumblebee is like lemongrass to a honeybee scout! :thumbsup:


I dumped it out behind the hive where there is a berm with a fence on it. Great bumblebee habitat. Perhaps bumblebees will make a home out of it.


----------



## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

"How high up is the "infested" hive?"

Eight inches. I use cement blocks. Next time I go out there, I'm going to put 1/4" hardware cloth in the entrance.


----------

