Mouse guards and reduced entrances

[ShinySideUp]

I have reduced the size of the entrances to my hives to help any falling population defend against intruders, I have also bought some mouse guards.

The entrances are now about 10 centimetres wide but the mouse guards are as wide as the hive so I'm a little confused as to which to use and when since to use the mouse guards I'd have to open up the entrance but if I don't use the mouse guards then mice could get in through the reduced entrance. How are mouse guards and reduced entrance sizes used in practice? Is there a seasonal period when they are used exclusively?

 

[kevrhcfag]

Bit early for either imho.

Too early for mouse guards and if the hives are Ok wasps shouldn't really get near them. If there are a lot of wasps then you could help by reducing entrances.

If you have any failing queens now is the time to be planning to replace them.

 

[manek]

I've pinned a mouse guard over the top of an entrance block before, seems to work ok. Bit early now for a guard, though, I would have thought, as there's still nectar and pollen arriving so you don't want to restrict the entrance too much, or you may lose pollen as it gets rubbed off the foragers. Wait until it gets cooler and the mice are more likely to be looking for a warm refuge.

That would be my thought but more experienced beeks will be along shortly.

 

[megadyptes]

The entrances are now about 10 centimetres wide but the mouse guards are as wide as the hive

I guess it depends on the sort of mouseguard you bought, but when you've got the entrance down the size you plan to overwinter with, cut the mouseguard to fit that width?

I got given a mouseguard like this with the first hive iI used. Cut it into 4" sections and held in place with a couple of frame was all that was needed to cover the entrance, and it could easily be rotated out of the way on a good day if the ladies were out and about.

 

[Jambo]

I had understood from my reading that until the bees are in a cluster (winter) any mouse stupid enough to go into the hive will be dealt with pretty swiftly?

Wasps' success is more dependent on hive strength since they are small, bee-like, can fly, are armed with a sting etc.

 

[ShinySideUp]

Ok, I'll take the restrictor out again.


(sigh �&#56852 so much to learn. Still, if it was easy everyone would he doing it.

 

[theeggman]

We run with entrances reduced to your current size all year with no problems.

 

[Levitt53]

I put my mouse guards over the reduced entrance when frosts were first forecasted last year. However on really nice days when the bees were flying they were a bit congested trying to get out through both. I felt that I should have taken the entrance block out completely before putting the mouse guard over the top. Which is right?

 

[MerryBee]

If your entrance reducer leaves the entrance only 8-9 mm high you dont need a mouse guard.


The Dave Cushman website says it all

"When bees are active they will deter mice themselves, but when they start to cluster on cold days in the autumn mice will seek entry. Mice are unable to get through a narrow gap of less than 8-9mm, so some physical form of denying them entry works. If you have a deep floor you will need to restrict the entrance in some way. This could be a flat metal mouse guard with holes in as sold by appliance dealers or an entrance block with a shallow entrance. I use shallow floors that prevent entry of mice.

When making entrance blocks or shallow floors a pencil can be used to size the gap, as I have never found a mouse will enter a gap so small. I don't like making mouse guards from queen excluder because a large amount of pollen is scraped off the legs of the bees."

 

[Beefriendly]

If your entrance reducer leaves the entrance only 8-9 mm high you dont need a mouse guard.

A thought for consideration.
Mice are rarely a problem in my area (they may be in yours)...but we have a cat . I never use those perforated mouse guards. I've had a single incursion by a mouse that destroyed the bottom of 2 frames in one hive in all the time I've been keeping bees. Both mouse and bees were fine and survived each others company over the long winter nights.
So I don't use them, I think the down sides of scraping vital pollen off bees in spring and the hindrance to entrance/exit makes them an unnecessary autumn/winter accessory.....at least in my area. Perhaps worth finding out whether you really need them or not where you live.
To me they have become part of the beekeeping "things to do in late autumn" mantra. The advice about keeping any entrances below 8mm is sound.

 

[Swift Nick]

If your entrance reducer leaves the entrance only 8-9 mm high you dont need a mouse guard.


The Dave Cushman website says it all

"When bees are active they will deter mice themselves, but when they start to cluster on cold days in the autumn mice will seek entry. Mice are unable to get through a narrow gap of less than 8-9mm, so some physical form of denying them entry works. If you have a deep floor you will need to restrict the entrance in some way. This could be a flat metal mouse guard with holes in as sold by appliance dealers or an entrance block with a shallow entrance. I use shallow floors that prevent entry of mice.

When making entrance blocks or shallow floors a pencil can be used to size the gap, as I have never found a mouse will enter a gap so small. I don't like making mouse guards from queen excluder because a large amount of pollen is scraped off the legs of the bees."

Take a look at this video, mouse getting through a 6mm high gap.
Probably extreme, but I would use the guard with holes, mice can also enlarge entrances in wood or plastic, especially if they sense food on the other side.

https://youtu.be/s_x7JH5ir3A

 

[user 6228]

In the forest there are no mouse guards except those with a stinger.
An insulated hive up a 0.7m metal pole( to make as difficult and as exposed as 5m of tree) with a long insulated tunnel of a nest entrance (to keep the mouse guard hot until the mice give up) is a practical alternative.

 

[masterBK]

With mesh floors you don't need a wide entrance so then no need to add a mouse guard.

 

[Teemore]

I have made do without mouse guards since I started keeping bees as has the chap who started me in beekeeping. All my apiaries are in rural locations. My hives have full width, removable entrance blocks. The "normal" entrance is 100mm x 7mm deep but when there is a heavy flow on and commensurate bee traffic, I generally remove the entrance block and allow them the use of the full width entrance. Sometimes I forget to remove the entrance block and the bees "made do" with the "normal" entrance. I have standardised on 7mm deep entrance slots following previous discussions on this forum about mice, bee hive entrances and consideration of information on the Cushman website.

At a slight tangent, the aforementioned chap who started me beekeeping says that the best mouse guard comes in the form of throw packs of rat/mouse bait....

 

[drex]

Take a look at this video, mouse getting through a 6mm high gap.
Probably extreme, but I would use the guard with holes, mice can also enlarge entrances in wood or plastic, especially if they sense food on the other side.

https://youtu.be/s_x7JH5ir3A

Mice can flatten their head and bodies, so restricting height only is not enough. Hence the circular hole on proprietary mouse guards

 

[Millet]

Take a look at this video, mouse getting through a 6mm high gap.
Probably extreme, but I would use the guard with holes, mice can also enlarge entrances in wood or plastic, especially if they sense food on the other side.

https://youtu.be/s_x7JH5ir3A

That is an animated clip, an adult mouse mouse will not fit through a 8mm let alone a 6mm gap, my aviaries have 12mm square mesh on them half grown young mice regularly get stuck half way through and die.

I use 8/9mm tunnel entrances and under floor entrances with 8/9 mm wide entrances so i never need to put those pollen removing mouse guards on.

 

[Swarm]

That is an animated clip, an adult mouse mouse will not fit through a 8mm let alone a 6mm gap, my aviaries have 12mm square mesh on them half grown young mice regularly get stuck half way through and die.

I use 8/9mm tunnel entrances and under floor entrances with 8/9 mm wide entrances so i never need to put those pollen removing mouse guards on.

All my floors have full width 8mm entrances accessed via the lobby, mice are not a problem.

 

[Softley]

Ask two beekeeper the same question...

Last year I did away with the mouse guards and just had reduced entrances in place. One weak colony became home to a couple of mice. I only realised they were there the second time I replaced the entrance reducer, sometime in February - the mice were pushing it out when the were exiting the hive! Mice make a real mess of a hive and from now on I'll be using mouse guards (alone, without entrance reducers). I think that there are some areas that have a greater mouse population than others and some beekeepers don't have a problem with mice, partly for this reason.

The height of a gap through which a mouse can pass is determined by the depth of its skull. Young mice have smaller skulls than adult mice and can therefore fit through smaller gaps. Mice can flatten their bodies to fit through narrow gaps if the gap is wide enough, hence mouse guards being small circular holes. If you look at the a mouse guard next to a pollen trap you will see that a perforated mouse guard has larger holes and isn't likely to strip pollen. I suppose this could become an issue if the entrance became congested but this shouldn't be an issue in winter.

It is a little early for mouse guards. Entrance reducers may be beneficial where robbing is taking place (wasps or other bees). When the wasps disappear and the nights are getting cold I'd remove entrance reducers and fit mouse guards. I'd take guards off and put entrance reducers in when the bees become active again as the weather warms next year.

 

[bontbee]

IMHO, definitely too early for mouse guards... the bees are starting to gather pollen for winter and mouse guards strip pollen off the bees' legs. I reckon to leave it for a few months yet for mouse guards, and I only use them on deep entrances, ie more than 8 - 9mm. I've not had any prob with shallow entrances, or underfloor entrances so far - fingers crossed! I reduce entrances on all stocks with deep floors at this time of year to a width of about 2 cm - less on small colonies, or if I notice there is a prob with wasps.

 

[fredbloggs]

I have a particular large population of mice at two apiaries. they tunnel everywhere and I have had them prise the cheapo Txxxnes metal excluder off to get in as well as shift entrance blocks

I have thought (and dismissed) traps both live and deadly to reduce the population.As I do also have a really healthy population of snakes so the circle of life is just as important. I am now on Polyhives so have bought the super dooper castellated mouse guard from the same supplier whose name begins with T. In the sale they are £1.50. I reckon that is money worth spending on rodents who want a winter in Hotel Apifornia.

Check these devices out. Instead of being fixed directly to the floor, they slot into pre-fixed brackets attached to the brood box so removal/ reapplication is as simple as that

Regards

FB

(just need some brainbox to come on and tell me "Bought it/ Fitted it/Chucked it")

Confidence is high !!