BAIT HIVES - what's your success rate?

[SixFooter]

My bait nuc has been passed up twice in favour of a full size brood box, even by a tiddly cast, which concurs with Seeley's work (read Honeybee Democracy - a cracking read).

I use 15" x 15"" bait boxes, which I think Seeley said was optimum in Honeybee Democracy. I put hand holds on the side to make them easier to lift down and a disc entrance closer over a circular hole at the front.

I also put nucs out, just because I have them and, I must admit, these are nearly as successful as the 15" cubes. If you use a BB, you presumably need a floor and a roof. That has to be difficult to handle when you need to close a swarm in and move the hive off a shed roof or whatever.

15" plywood cubes are the answer. So easy to make out of shuttering ply

 

[Illo]

I might try this - I am now faced with moving said BB occupied with a colossal swarm, off the roof at the back of the house, where it is about 10 feet from my next door neighbour's bathroom window Luckily they are very pro-honey bee, but might not be for very long if they have unwelcome visitors in the shower!

I can see me lowering it down on a rope while standing on a wobbly ladder. I feel an unfortunate home video coming on...

 

[blackcavebees]

I might try this - I am now faced with moving said BB occupied with a colossal swarm, off the roof at the back of the house, where it is about 10 feet from my next door neighbour's bathroom window Luckily they are very pro-honey bee, but might not be for very long if they have unwelcome visitors in the shower!

I can see me lowering it down on a rope while standing on a wobbly ladder. I feel an unfortunate home video coming on...

I'll send the video to "you've been framed" we'll split the £250 and buy more bait boxes for next year

 

[Jagmn]

Uploaded a time-lapse of the swarm from yesterday. Seems I can't post links but if you head to y-tube and search for "ZCUdvC0trMc", it'll appear. It's not great quality (rear PTZ CCTV dome) but you can see them bearding up about halfway through just before the second hive appears.

Interestingly the Nuc (left in place) has a lot of workers going in and out today. The main swarm + hive is on the other side of the garden (moved at midnight with too much grass shoved in the entrance; I had to let them out this morning) with foragers going to and fro. Could this be stragglers from yesterday that didn't bed down with the rest?

 

[poshpikey]

had two frames of bees move into a bait hive about a week ago.

 

[beebopalula]

Put out up to 5 bait hives of different types / sizes / locations and caught 3 primes and 6 casts in them so far. Much better than last year - 2 bait hives with 0 swarms.

 

[PaulC]

4 out of 4 this year

Put up 4 boxes - 3 made from old Dadant hives the other an adapted Warre, with solid, fixed floor and hinged roof. Baited with either pheromone lure, charme d'abeilles spray or the new 'wet-wipes' (was going to try a scientific comparison!)
Frames were one of old drawn brood, the remaining starter strip.
Boxes adapted to be as close to 40litres as possible.
All picked up a swarm within 4-10 days....

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Put out four bait hives more or less to Seeley's 15x15" recommendation (tweaked a bit to take a national frame) caught three prime swarms - one in each: first one, off the field, a whopper, unfortunately slipped as unfixing from the tree thus it was them or me (outcome - I'm still here!) and after rolling down into a small ravine the resulting honey coated bees didn't make it, the rest, even though put into a nice clean hive, buggered off! Second one,Garn Cottage, no drama there, but absconded 24 hours later (leaving BIAS!) the third and smallest (just my luck!) - field again, i have two bait hives up there settled in nicely and slowly filling the hive with brood and stores. Still time for the home bait hive to bring in the goods, last year caught a fantastic gentle swarm mid August.

 

[Toffeesmum]

Worth leaving bait hives out even now???

Still time for the home bait hive to bring in the goods, last year caught a fantastic gentle swarm mid August.

Question - I have 3 bait hives set up in 2 separate locations, following the usually format (solid floor, frames, lemon grass oil, bit of old comb etc etc). After A LOT of scout activity for over a week at the beginning of July in one of them, not a sniff since. I had been planning to take them in now to dry etc ready for next Spring, but judging by above quote, recon it's worth leaving them out a little longer??

 

[Cazza]

Question - I have 3 bait hives set up in 2 separate locations, following the usually format (solid floor, frames, lemon grass oil, bit of old comb etc etc). After A LOT of scout activity for over a week at the beginning of July in one of them, not a sniff since. I had been planning to take them in now to dry etc ready for next Spring, but judging by above quote, recon it's worth leaving them out a little longer??

Maybe, I was called yesterday to see if I could pick up a swarm in South Norfolk.
Cazza