Stolen Hives

[Lucky Bee]

All my hives were stolen this morning from a farm just outside Hungerford. A very professional job, whole site cleared. The hives had the Arnia hive monitoring systems in so I got theft alerts at 6.38 am. By the time we saw the alerts and got there everything was gone. Devastated!

 

[pargyle]

All my hives were stolen this morning from a farm just outside Hungerford. A very professional job, whole site cleared. The hives had the Arnia hive monitoring systems in so I got theft alerts at 6.38 am. By the time we saw the alerts and got there everything was gone. Devastated!

Oh dear ... another one ... it's that time of the year ... words cannot describe how angry this makes me - more so when we know that it must be people who know something about bees - I am reluctant to call them beekeepers ... B something else in my book.

Really sorry for your loss ... it confirms to me though that systems that monitor hives for theft are not really any good unless you live next to the apiary and have a shotgun handy !

My view of hive security is still a large block of concrete set in the ground with a hoop of rebar in it and a padlocked chain the size of an anchor chain firmly attached to the hive floor and roof - won't stop the thieving b.stds but it might make them think about nicking someone else's !

 

[wessexmario]

any more details, photos of hives?

 

[snelgrove]

All my hives were stolen this morning from a farm just outside Hungerford. A very professional job, whole site cleared. The hives had the Arnia hive monitoring systems in so I got theft alerts at 6.38 am. By the time we saw the alerts and got there everything was gone. Devastated!

Very sorry for your loss, I no what it feels like . The scum that does this all so often get away with it and the hives are never returned. I would so like a prosecution to happen and the thieves or beekeepers and I use beekeepers in the least possible sense caught and shamed.

 

[For want of a better word]

... words cannot describe how angry this makes me

6.30 am this morning... some eeejit had left the gates open next to one of the out apiaries.... try moving highland cattle off a main road... could not get a signal on the mobile... when farmer did arrive and did a head count one was missing...... will not make the news like the Hatton Garden Heist!


I despair!

Yeghes da

 

[B+.]

All my hives were stolen this morning

What a world we live in!

 

[Torq]

A friend had 2 frames of BIAS stolen out of an over wintered poly nuc last night!!

 

[BKF Admin]

Have you reported it and got a crime reference number ?
The more thefts reported can only help in catching the thieves.

 

[Edwardking]

All my hives were stolen this morning from a farm just outside Hungerford. A very professional job, whole site cleared. The hives had the Arnia hive monitoring systems in so I got theft alerts at 6.38 am. By the time we saw the alerts and got there everything was gone. Devastated!

I am so sorry to hear this. I hope the scum are caught and sent down for a long time.

 

[tresallier]

how will import restrictions affect this type of behaviour i wonder.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

how will import restrictions affect this type of behaviour i wonder.

Know something we don't ?

 

[Lucky Bee]

I have reported it to the police. The Wiltshire rural crime officer will be getting in touch with me. Thanks everyone for your support.

 

[tresallier]

Know something we don't ?

No - just wondering about the laws of supply and demand.

 

[Hivemaker.]

No - just wondering about the laws of supply and demand.

What laws of supply and demand?

 

[peteinwilts]

I have often thought about making a bait hive.

... a hive purposefully set up with some of my birds old telemetry built in, in a location a little easy to get to than most.

the questions I would have is would the police take it seriously if I could pinpoint the culprits location, or failing that, can I get a baseball bat large enough to apply the sufficient beating required.

risk of being nicked for entrapment?

 

[peteinwilts]

What laws of supply and demand?

I think Tresallier is talking metaphorically.... less bees available = the higher the demand price = hives being nicked on a more regular basis

 

[wessexmario]

It's very likely that hive thefts in an area are likely to be just a few individuals, so if the police didn't take any action (they seem to be quite concerned and responsive about rural crime in Wilts) then if tracked down at least local beeks could be made aware.

If beeks held photos of their queens, then with the individual marking they would be a quite unique identifier of a colony. The photos could then be posted in this "stolen" board. If someone had to replace queens in order not to be caught, it would make apiary thefts less appealing.
Catching and identifying a stolen queen in a swarm would then also be a belated indicator of the locality of an apiray thief.
It's lots of little pieces of info that gets them caught.

 

[B+.]

It's lots of little pieces of info that gets them caught.

My local church had the lead stolen from the porch roof despite large signs posted in the window that magic water was used to identify church property. I wonder if they meant holy water.

 

[tresallier]

imported bee numbers drop therefore demand for local bees goes up. As demand for local bees goes up - with a limited supply available the value of local bees goes up.

As the value of bees goes up more 'suppliers' will find it advantageous to enter the market; some might not be quite as honourable as others in how they source their supplies.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

My local church had the lead stolen from the porch roof despite large signs posted in the window that magic water was used to identify church property. I wonder if they meant holy water.

Does magic water survive the lead being melted?