Hive vandalised

[Honeypi]

Morning all,

We came back from a weekend away yesterday and someone had kicked our hive over. Roof, crown board and super were on the floor and hive stand was looking decidedly wonky. Luckily it had been reasonably warm and most of the bees had found there way back into the brood box. Had it been raining it would have been disastrous.

We live in an urban area so just put it down to drunken yobs. Then this morning we came down again and the super had been pushed halfway off the hive.

The problem is, we're on a corner plot with almost all of the garden in front of the house and quite open. We've planted some hedgerow to fill in the gaps but this will take time to establish. The current plan is put a fence up where required but even that will take time.

In the meantime, do you think it would be worthwhile moving them to the back yard? My concern is that it gets very little sun. Obviously we would need to close them in for a day or two so they reoroient themselves, but the weather is looking bad so it might actually be a good time to do it.

Also going to talk to neighbours this evening to see if they can shed any light on things. Is there anything else we should be considering?

In an unrelated question, does anyone know about the legalities of bear traps on private property?

 

[domino]

Maybe worth strapping them with travel straps so if they get pushed over they are still in one piece.

I'd also be tempted to set up a video camera.

 

[Honeypi]

Video camera was already on the wish list!

Good idea with the straps, I'm sure we have some laying around.

 

[pargyle]

Video camera was already on the wish list!

Good idea with the straps, I'm sure we have some laying around.

I would hammer a couple of long stakes into the ground either side of the hive and put a second tightened hive strap over the lot with the ends fastened to the stakes so that it will be very difficult to push the hive over.

Plus ... if it's happening whilst you are indoors ...then:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GARAGE-SE...LESS-PIR-MOTION-SENSOR-DRIVEWAY-/181665505346

Lot cheaper than a camera and you can get out there with a baseball bat !

 

[wessexmario]

A quick fix would be one of those shed door alarms that go off when they're moved. Put it under the roof, and if anyone sets it off have car/pushbike/baseball bat ready to pursue - or feed the offender back to the disturbed bees - I'd make them rebuild the hive ("oh, you don't have a bee suit?")

If you have spare boxes and do move the hive to the back, then set up the spare as a 'bait hive', the sooner they're caught the better.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Roof, crown board and super were on the floor and hive stand was looking decidedly wonky.

Are you by any chance using a flat plastic queen excluder?

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Maybe worth strapping them with travel straps so if they get pushed over they are still in one piece.

I'd also be tempted to set up a video camera.

A basic cctv kit with recorder isn't that expensive nowadays. Have a trawl through ebay for ideas.

 

[warts]

Good idea to have, as suggested, a camera set up so you can see exactly what is happening. I live in a city, but discovered a badger frequents our garden at least once a week by using a camera. I think I read somewhere that badgers will knock over a beehive. Just a thought, but the culprit just might not be human. Either way, at least you will know.

Sally

 

[Hawklord]

I had a similar problem a few years ago. I strapped the hives down to double stands and put 3' X 2' paving slabs under each end.

 

[badger65]

You can use a Raspberry pi mini computer. Attach a pi infra red or ordinary pi camera. Download some free video software. It will do motion detection record video and send you an image of the activation by email or SMS. If you are a real nerd you can the remotely activate a siren and tell the culprit to do one by an attached speaker. Cost you about £50

 

[La Folie]

Just moving them to your back yard is likely to just confuse the bees. The 3 feet or 3 miles rule still applies.

 

[beeno]

Hi Honeypi,
I would move them, if your back garden is secure. It is probably a neighbour, who does not approve of beekeeping.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

an even more hacked off neighbour if the hive is just moved from the front to the back of the house and there's a big clump of totally bemused and hacked off bees at the original location wondering where the hive has gone

 

[bontbee]

Hi,

Is the front garden open enough for the bees to be flying out low enough to fly into people (- on the road/pavement?) Are they good natured bees, tolerant of activity near the hive?

Sorry if this is all too obvious, but you mentioned "gaps" and I wondered if someone has been on the receiving end of a bee and felt the urge to retaliate???

 

[dpearce4]

Are you by any chance using a flat plastic queen excluder?

Please explain HM?

 

[Hivemaker.]

Please explain HM?

Had a few problems with them, especially the brown coloured ones available from one supplier, supers slipping off unless the hive completely level, and even then very easy to slide, bit like placing them on a ptfe surface, usually slip after rain, blamed the problem on deer or even vandals, until i realized the problem was the excluders, rectified by roughing up with an abrasive disc in a grinder, or not using them.

 

[Moggs]

You have bees, in a front garden, in an urban area? Are we to assume that 'front' means visible to passing traffic? If that's the case then I would imagine that it's not 'if' but 'when'.


I've had that déjà vu before...

 

[GlenJ]

Had a few problems with them, especially the brown coloured ones available from one supplier, supers slipping off unless the hive completely level, and even then very easy to slide, bit like placing them on a ptfe surface, usually slip after rain, blamed the problem on deer or even vandals, until i realized the problem was the excluders, rectified by roughing up with an abrasive disc in a grinder, or not using them.

I can understand that, but after a short time there would be enough "sticky" to keep it in place, I would think.

To be honest, it sounds like the perpetrators have had a poke, had a bad experience, tried timidly again, probably won't try a third time. The bees have sorted it. More power to the bees!

 

[Honeypi]

Hi all and thanks again for the ideas.

Forecast is cold and rainy so I've blocked the entrance and moved them to the back yard. I'll open it up in a day or so. Hopefully they'll reorierentate after that.

That's just a temporary measure while we source a fence to block the main entrance (we turfed over our drive a few months ago but the hedge is yet to establish).

Already familiar with the Raspberry Pi so I'll be getting one of those to use as a camera. I'd already had the idea of installing one with a camera pointing at the hive entrance so I can watch/obsess about them while I'm away from home. So this is just making me do that a bit sooner than I'd planned.

We'll probably go belt and braces and strap the hive down as well once it gets moved back.

I know that moving them like this isn't ideal but surely better than them all getting rained on. Correct me if I'm wrong!

 

[pargyle]

I know that moving them like this isn't ideal but surely better than them all getting rained on. Correct me if I'm wrong!

I don't like locking my bees in for any serious length of time - I think it stresses them at this time of the year when they really want to be out foraging. Even after a couple of days of lock up I think you will find bees still return to your front garden and if there's no hive they will make a nuisance of themselves. You might get lucky ... but you won't know until you open the hive.

If I was you I'd put a box out in the place in the front garden where the hive was so that you can collect any foragers with a retained memory of that spot - you can then keep tipping them back into your new location until they get the message or die ... or you get fed up of tippng irritated bees out of a box !