# Small Hive Beetle in Missouri?



## Muddywaters (Sep 3, 2007)

New beekeeper in Southeast Missouri. Very healthy hive (filled two supers first year despite the drought). When I robbed the honey found very small black beetle when cleaning up. I am sending to niece who is graduate entomology student for positive ID, but did not think this beetle was in my area. Anyone else find them?


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

There is a small black sap beetle around here that is smaller than a small hive beetle and lacking in several of the anatomical features of a small hive beetle. On the other hand they have officially seen Small Hive Beetle in Nebraska now.


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## Grant (Jun 12, 2004)

I'm just North of you in Cape Country. You ask if there are Small Hive Beetles in MO?

My answer: ABSOLUTELY!

Should we be afraid? ABSOLUTELY!

Have they been a problem for me? Not until this year, and then in one yard they were ABSOLUTELY EXPONENTIALLY EXPLOSIVE!

I wrote a little story of my past year's experience, along with some of the tools and traps I used, some too late, some too little. I squandered a ton of time and energy fighting the inevitable.

In short I will tell you full sun is easily 80% of the solution. The sandwich traps are tremendous. I counted 400 SHB in one of my traps. 

If you want a copy, send me an e-mail to [email protected] (don't PM me as I can't send an attachment). My article will come as a Word.DOC attached to the reply.

In the subject line in the e-mail simply put "SHB article"

Grant
Jackson, MO


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## NeilV (Nov 18, 2006)

Ed Levi, a bee inspector for Arkansas, spoke about SHB at our club last spring. He had maps of counties where they were "officially" present in Arkansas. That map showed them in extreme northeast Arkansas, and that was as of 2006. I'm sure you've got em to.

At that time, I don't think that they were "officially" in Tulsa County, where I live. But unofficially, they were in just about every hive I had looked at, but in small numbers.

For anybody who is interested in an organic SHB control system, Ed Levi recommended a program using in hive traps with oil to drown the adults and using Nematodes on the soil around the hives to kill larvae. If I recall correctly, the life cycle is that the adults lay eggs in hive, the larvae live in the hive for about 2 days, then they crawl out of the hive and pupate in the soil, emerge as adults and so it goes. Ed cited a study that showed that the Nematodes could kill 100% of the larvae when they entered the ground. He recommended a specific species of Nematode -- can't remember the name -- because it lives longer in the soil than some others. He reports no problems with SHB using that system.

I've not done that yet, because I have just seen a few of them in my hives. I think/hope that thespot I have my hives does not present a very good spot for them to get in the ground. To get to good soil, they would have to crawl across a driveway. 

If anybody knows the species info for the Nematodes and a source, please post it. If nobody knows, I'll see if I can track it down. I don't have contact info for Ed Levi right now, but could get it.


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## Jeffzhear (Dec 2, 2006)

Grant said:


> If you want a copy, send me an e-mail to [email protected] (don't PM me as I can't send an attachment). My article will come as a Word.DOC attached to the reply.
> 
> In the subject line in the e-mail simply put "SHB article"
> 
> ...


Grant, First, ty for sharing your article. I found both parts very interesting and enlightening. Yet another issue to worry about and get prepared for.

I haven't seen them yet....thankfully.


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## Show-me (Aug 3, 2007)

*Shb*

Grant,

Good article and thanks.


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## funyfarm (Jan 26, 2008)

*Small Hive Beetle Traps*

I read Grants article in Jan. ABJ, Great article. I would like to know more about the sandwich container traps. Are these something I can make myself, are there plans available, etc. I'm a hobby beekeeper in extreme northwest Missouri and have not seen SHB yet. I just want to be prepared. Thanks for any info.

funyfarm


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## Grant (Jun 12, 2004)

There is a great video on the web. Click here:

http://beekeeperlinda.blogspot.com/2007/04/full-on-attack-against-small-hive.html

Linda has several links and this video clip is one of a couple of links.

Grant
Jackson, MO http://www.25hives.homestead.com


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## Aspera (Aug 1, 2005)

Are there any places left where one does not need to worry about SHB?


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## Dale Hodges (Jul 13, 2007)

Possible, but hard for a FL boy to believe. The..... are relentless!


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## Grant (Jun 12, 2004)

Any places where you don't have to worry about SHB?

Yes!

Inside my safe deposit box at the bank. Inside the water tank on my toilet. Under the asphalt shingles on my house. In the dishwasher. In the ice maker in my freezer.

But if it has anything to do with bees or my honey house.....well, no. I remain suspiciously wary of SHB. They are relentless.

Grant
Jackson, MO


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## bluegrass (Aug 30, 2006)

We don't have any present in Vermont. I never experieced any until I moved to Kentucky and other than a super storage issue I don't see that they are that big of a problem. I kinda like opening up a hive watching them run from the edge of the hive tool, their guard bees in fast persuit


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## ekrouse (Aug 26, 2004)

*SHB in Vermont*

I wouldn't be so sure about no SHB in Vermont. I didn't think there were any in upstate New York until they wiped out a couple of nucs during a building extraction last year!

-ekrouse


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## Gene Weitzel (Dec 6, 2005)

SHB traps are good, full sun is good. Soil controls (ground drench, nematodes, etc) are questionable. The bees carry the larvae out and drop them in all directions for 100's of feet from the hive, so it makes it pretty prohibitive to cover all the ground that the bees cover with some sort of soil control. The beetles also are capable of flying for miles and home in on hives by detecting alarm pheromone. Recently it has been discovered that they infect the pollen stores with a yeast that generates the same pheromone and allows even more SHB to be attracted. So far, I have found that the combination of hygeinic bees, full sun and traps offers the best control.


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## Tillie (Apr 26, 2006)

They lived through the winter in my hives. I thought that they disappeared during winter and reappeared when it got warmer, but I have them in force now in my hives and I took the traps off for winter since I wouldn't be opening the hives to reapply vinegar in the frame traps and lure in the Sonny-Mel traps.

So far they have caused no damage in my hives other than the irritation of their presence. I think the strong hive makes a lot of difference. 

My hives are on my deck, 14 feet or so above the ground and they are in the hives. They fly a long way from their birthplace to occupy hives.

Linda T


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## Aisha (May 2, 2007)

Gene Weitzel said:


> So far, I have found that the combination of hygeinic bees, full sun and traps offers the best control.


Ditto on the sun and hygienic bees. I will add that screening them out as much as possible also helps. I would never leave an inner cover with a big open slot at the top. The combination of darkness and an opening invites them to crawl in through that slot.

When I was using an inner cover I put a screen over the hole. I would find small hive beetles trapped in the framed lip around the screen. 

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1282/1001211713_26177d09a5.jpg

Now I use a screened frame over the whole top super. Helps ventilation too.


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## Gene Weitzel (Dec 6, 2005)

Aisha said:


> Ditto on the sun and hygienic bees. I will add that screening them out as much as possible also helps. I would never leave an inner cover with a big open slot at the top. The combination of darkness and an opening invites them to crawl in through that slot.
> 
> When I was using an inner cover I put a screen over the hole. I would find small hive beetles trapped in the framed lip around the screen.
> 
> ...


I typically don't use inner covers at all anymore. Just migratory tops. I have a few hives that still have the inner cover/standard top setup that I have not gotten around to switching to migratory tops, I looked at them a couple of days ago and they have significantly more SHB than the ones with only a migratory top. I will be switching them out this weekend.


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