October Swarm Catch

It's kind of late in the year for honey bees to be starting a new colony, but it does happen. Here's a short video of a small colony "moving in" to their new home.

Since "closing" on their house, the bees have been coming in with huge loads of pollen for their winter food. They've also done some modifications. The entrance hole is 3/4" in diameter. The bees must have decided that that was too big, and that too much heat would be escaping in the winter. So, they have reduced the entrance by at least half with propolis which is a caulk-like substance which the bees produce from resins they gather from trees. By reducing their entrance, it also makes it more easily defendable from other robbing colonies or predators.

Honey bees are one of God's marvelous creations. I hope that I can help this colony make it through the winter, so they can become a healthy and productive hive.

One-armed swarm catch!

One of my crowded hives swarmed today, and they decided to move into a hive trap I set up for them less than a week ago. This was really good since I only have one good arm right now and couldn't have caught them any other way. A new colony of honey bees were born today at 5:30 PM.

Indian Wells Golf Course Catch

I want to take this opportunity to welcome the newest members of our bee family. I caught these girls yesterday in tree on the 15th hole of Indian Wells Golf Course. 

It was around 7 am, and I was preparing my beemobile for a bee removal in Pawley's Island, when I got a call from Shawn (head greenskeeper) that there was a cluster of honeybees up in a tree. It happened to be right on the way to my job in Pawley's, so I told him that I would come by and catch them for him. He told me they were up about 25', so I loaded my trusty (or not...), improvised 5 gallon bucket on a pole and headed over to the golf course. 

Shawn met me out there and showed me where the girls were "hanging out." As it was on somewhat of an incline, I asked Shawn if he could stick around and hold the ladder for me, while I extended the bucket up to catch the bees. He cheerfully agreed to do it, and I prepared things for the catch. 

I had used this setup to catch a swarm at my own house last August, so I had confidence that it would work. So, I extended the pole-mounted bucket up to the bees, while Shawn steadied the ladder for me. As I "bumped" the bees with the bucket, many of the bees came raining down upon us (neither of us had any protective gear on). At this point, Shawn, who was holding the ladder said, "Tom, I think one of them went down my shirt." I looked down and saw a bee on his collar, and told him not to worry, the bee had not gotten that far, but was only on his collar. I told him that if the bee had desired to sting him, it would already have happened. He hung in there with me, and then the next exciting thing happened.

In the process of "bumping" the cluster of bees with my bucket, the bucket broke loose from the pole and came crashing to the ground with bees flying everywhere. This added to the already exciting atmosphere. Thanks to the amazing invention of duct tape, I was able to reattach the bucket to the pole and commence with the bee catch. I was able to get about 2/3 rds of the bees into my hive box and the bees were now orienting to the new hive I'd set up for them.

At this point, I left the bees there and went to my removal in Pawley's Island. I came back around 8pm, and found all the bees in my hive box. I strapped the hive together, loaded it into the bee mobile and headed home to place them in their new location - my back yard. Mission accomplished!

I would like to thank Shawn, at Indian Wells Golf Course, for calling me when he saw the swarm assembling and for assisting me in the catch. I couldn't have done it with out you!

Here's a few pictures of the catch. Click on the images to enlarge.

From the bucket to the hive

My beemobile in the background

Here's their beautiful view

Getting dark. Time to get them to their new home.

Thanks for looking!

Bee Air Conditioning

Honey bees have to keep their hives reasonably cool in the summer. Here's a picture showing how they do it. The bees themselves become their "air conditioners" for the hive. These bees are "fanning," which produces a cooling effect upon the hive. 

Click on the picture to enlarge

If you have received this picture in an email, click on the link that says, "Bees by the Sea" on the bottom of your email. That will take you to the blog. Then, if you want to enlarge a picture or leave a comment, you are in the right place to do that. 

Thanks for looking!

It has been a Bee-usy summer!

We have been real busy this summer managing our hives and removing hives where people don't want them. Below are some pictures from two removals we did. It was great fun! (and lots of work)

Note: Click on any of the pictures to enlarge.

Andrews Town Hall

In April, we got a call that honey bees were getting into the town hall building in Andrews, SC. We packed up the bee mobile and removed the bees from their wall. 

Above, you can see where the bees were before I cut into the heavily plastered wall.

Here, you can see the first comb section of which there were five.

A close up of the comb section. Notice the white bee larva.

All of the hexagonal cells are capped brood (baby bees).

Here, a large comb section lays on the floor with four more still in the wall.

The Baptist Bees

We completed this removal just this week. These bees chose to set up their home 35' up in the top of a pretty 100 year old Baptist church, If I was a honey bee, I also would have found this location attractive.

Here's a few of them enjoying some fresh air outside the hive.

Beginning the work by removing some shingles.

 

There were 8 comb sections to bee removed.

Pretty nice digs!

My faithful helper from 35' up.

Here they are in their new home.

Finally, here's a short video from up in the bucket.

Thanks for looking!

Note: If you have received these pictures via email, click on the link on the bottom of the email that says, Bees by the Sea to get a better view of the pictures and to see the video.

First Swarm Catch of 2012

Yesterday, at around 9 AM, I received a call to remove a swarm. This was an ideal catch. The bees were about 6' off the ground, and they were very gentle. The ball of bees was about as big as a basketball. I caught them and then returned in the evening to close up the hive box and take it home. 

Here they are entering their temporary abode.

Here they are in their permanent abode. Many are in the air as they reorient their on-board GPS system to their new location.

And, here they are "in the lineup." I added another box so they had some room to grow (first one on the left). 

Click on any of the pictures to enlarge.

Thanks for looking!

A Sense of Urgency

In the spring, honeybees have a sense of urgency as they seek to rebound from the dormancy of winter. When there are flowers starting to bloom and pollen to be gathered, bees are not wasting any time bringing it in. Imagine how much work would get done if humans had this kind of hustle!

Since we've had a very mild winter, my bees are off to an early start which may mean a very good year for honey. I did hive inspections today and found a population explosion going on inside the hives with lots of new bees and babies on the way. 

Also, this year we will be the official beekeepers at Brookgreen Gardens. Tomorrow I am going out with the head groundskeeper to find a suitable place to locate some hives of honeybees. So, this is going to bee a very interesting year!