Suspected wax moth: How to keep at bay?

[Anthony.]

Hi All,

Firstly thank you in advance for any advice you guys give!

We currently have 3 colonies:
a.) Overwintered currently on brood and a half and 2 x supers.
b.) Colony in a brood and today added a super.
c.) A nuc purchased this year but already on brood and a half and 2 x supers.

In both colony B and C we have spotted mold at points (on the crown board) and have spotted probably 3 moths in each hive across 2-3 weeks. We havent seen any damage at all or any traces at all in the colonies purely just moths and mold.

Given a strongest hive seems to be the best cure we added entrance blocks back in and slowed down adding additional space so they could effectively fight off any pests. However even today we spotted a moth in colony C which has been on a brood only (and a super for feeding).

All the literature i read suggests what to do after youve lost a colony to wax moth or if you want to store honey... nothing on during.

I will upload some photos of the moth but any advice on how best to keep them back would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Anthony.]

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

A strong colony will deal with waxmoth, no problem, but rather than the size of the hives, we would understand better if we knew the status of the contents - ie, how strong they are, how many frames of brood etc.
No colony should need feeding at the monet for a start.

 

[masterBK]

Your photo is of the male Moth. In wax moths the males attract the females (rather than the other way round) by emitting pheromones and ultra sonic sound waves of particular frequencies.

 

[beeno]

A good covering of bees on all frames is the stated line of defence for wax moth thereof the notion that a strong colony will deal with them. Just noticed wax moth burrowing under what was capped cells on a strong colony, so there may be some in the hive from time to time, but it will not become a problem. So, don't leave uncovered frames in the hive. Take them out, dummy down and replace when needed by the bees.

 

[gwjo]

I am a new keeper as well. I have a problem with wax moth in the hive. The books (BBKA and others) all talk about wax moth problems during storage. Last year I lost my first colony. I had bought a nuc from Paynes and they were doing really well but at the end of July/ early August they started dying. I had loads of dead bees at the entrance to the hive and wax moth inside. By the end of September the colony was dead.
I started again this year with a new nuc from Paynes. Made sure the hive and all kit was cleaned properly. The colony has done really well - grown from 6 frames to 10, plenty of bees, nice pattern of brood and reserves. I've just checked the inspection board and found 8 or more wax moths on it. I will open the hive later for a full inspection.
What do I do if I find an infestation of wax moth in the hive? All I can think of right now is to remove as much as I can manually from every frame. Any other suggestions?
Thanks,
George

 

[Hebeegeebee]

I see moth larvae now and again in hives, that's about it. Do you have a full width entrance, if so, it should be reduced.

 

[Patrick1]

Hi All,

Firstly thank you in advance for any advice you guys give!

We currently have 3 colonies:
a.) Overwintered currently on brood and a half and 2 x supers.
b.) Colony in a brood and today added a super.
c.) A nuc purchased this year but already on brood and a half and 2 x supers.

In both colony B and C we have spotted mold at points (on the crown board) and have spotted probably 3 moths in each hive across 2-3 weeks. We havent seen any damage at all or any traces at all in the colonies purely just moths and mold.

Given a strongest hive seems to be the best cure we added entrance blocks back in and slowed down adding additional space so they could effectively fight off any pests. However even today we spotted a moth in colony C which has been on a brood only (and a super for feeding).

All the literature i read suggests what to do after youve lost a colony to wax moth or if you want to store honey... nothing on during.

I will upload some photos of the moth but any advice on how best to keep them back would be greatly appreciated!

we all need to act on this if we can Vita Europe the UK suppliers of Certan B41 ( now banned )
This is the position going forward
Unfortunately, B401/Certan is no longer available in the UK. We do have a replacement (B402), which is now authorised in the US. We asked the Health & Safety Executive for an emergency import permit on the basis of this approval and the lack of alternatives in the UK. The HSE asked the National Bee Unit, who said that – in their opinion – wax moth is only a minor pest and therefore not eligible for emergency import.

Sadly that means that we will have to wait until full regulatory approval is granted, which is likely to take 2-3 years. We’re doing everything we can to speed that up but there are a lot of hoops to jump through.
Now in my opinion for the NBU to not realise how devastating wax moth is means they do not understand Beekeeping at all. We could and should make our views known to the NBU

 

[Repwoc]

I've just checked the inspection board and found 8 or more wax moths on it. I will open the hive later for a full inspection.

Bits of wax and hive detritus on the inspection board is a magnet for wax moths and as it's below the floor mesh the bees can't access it to deal with them. Leave the inspection board out or make sure you clean it frequently.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Unfortunately, B401/Certan is no longer available in the UK. We do have a replacement (B402), which is now authorised in the US.
Now in my opinion for the NBU to not realise how devastating wax moth is means they do not understand Beekeeping at all. We could and should make our views known to the NBU

Forum members already have an alternative they are using with great success. It's not a treatment for the bees, rather a treatment for hardware so might just avoid VMD regulations?

 

[gwjo]

Forum members already have an alternative they are using with great success. It's not a treatment for the bees, rather a treatment for hardware so might just avoid VMD regulations?

Can you tell us what this treatment is, please?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Can you tell us what this treatment is, please?

Dipel search the sticky section. There is a thread on it.

 

[pargyle]

I've used the DIY wax moth trap widely found on the internet .. it works - I caught a number of wax moths (both types) quite a lot of flies but no bees or wasps .. there seems to be a few wax moths about at present - I've actually seen them in the apiary but my colonies are strong and there's no sign of them getting in - or surviving if they have !

Worth a go - cost is neglible. I hang it on the edge of the apiary .. a good 6 feet from the nearest hive.

http://www.dave-cushman.net/bee/waxmothtrap.html
Dipel protects my stored frames - had no signs of infestation after using it last year on my stored frames .. and still clear now. Remember though .. Dipel/Certan only kills the grubs - it's a Bacteria that infects the grubs it does not affect the moths.

There's a good article in The Apiarist which explains all:

https://www.theapiarist.org/being-certan/

 

[drdrday]

Thanks Pargyle. Didn't know there was such as thing as a wax moth trap. I'll have to try that out - need to get someone else to peel the banana though

 

[Patrick1]

Forum members already have an alternative they are using with great success. It's not a treatment for the bees, rather a treatment for hardware so might just avoid VMD regulations?

Its an insecticide, how does that work with the beekeepers ethos ! I just tap the frame and dig out the ones I find, it seems to work for me.

 

[pargyle]

Its an insecticide, how does that work with the beekeepers ethos ! I just tap the frame and dig out the ones I find, it seems to work for me.

It's not an insecticide .. it's a baccillus (Nematodes) that finds a host in the wax moth grubs and basically eats them from the inside ... as such it is a natural treatment not an insecticide.

If you get an infestation of wax moth in your stored frames they will render them useless ... in the worst case I've seen they actually burrowed into a polystyrene hive walls and destroyed that as well.

These type of treatments are even accepted by the Soil Association as organic so why would you have a problem protecting your stored frames with this type of treatment ? There is a similar one for slugs that I make myself .. collect up all the slugs you can find - drown them in a vessel with water in it and let them stew. This concentrates the natural bacillus you find in slugs ... strain and dilute the resultant stewed liquid and spray it on the ground around the plants you wish to protect ... the slugs pick up the bacillus, die and unlike slug pellets there is no risk to other wildlife (hedgehogs for instance and birds) that may either eat the dead slugs or eat the pellets. (Hope that hasn't put you off your dinner - if your are squeamish about slugs you can buy the bacillus here):

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Slug-Nem...4640a4f623b519913ccb|ampid:PL_CLK|clp:2334524