very aggressive bees

[whoosling]

I have a hive of exceptionaly aggressive bees, can anyone give me advice on what to do with them. Even wearing extra protection by about frame 3 there are to many attacking bees for me to carry on to try and find the queen and get rid of her, all trying to get inside my suit from feet to head. Not sure if I should just be rid of them one way or another or find a method to get to the queen and unite the remainder with another hive.

 

[Finman]

.
If it causes life danger to outsiders, kill the colony.
.

The queen is difficult to find in such.

Move the hive three metres, and put a new hive into the site.

If you have another hive, take from it a brood frame into the new hive.
Put it into uppermost box. Then you can take it off a day before you give a new queen.
. It is queenless hive and bye a new laying queen into it.

Trickle the new hive with oxalic acid inside 7 days.
,
.

 

[dpearce4]

Try and move the hive a few meters away for an hour or so before you want to inspect and place a spare box and roof on the site so that all the flying bees go there.

Make sure u do this when they are flying heavily so that you really deplete the numbers of bees making it easier to then inspect and find the queen.

Decide what you are going to do with the queen before and if you are to requeen purchase before so you have her ready to place in, in the normal ways as described on here many times before. It might be getting a bit late to just kill her and hope as it will take a while to produce a new one missing the crucial winter bee producing time.

 

[Jambo]

It might be getting a bit late to just kill her and hope as it will take a while to produce a new one missing the crucial winter bee producing time.

In addition, surely hoping the daughter of an agressive colony to be a delight is asking a lot?

 

[Anduril]

Block the hive entrance, and move the hive about 20 feet. On the original site place a hive or nuc box with a brood comb from quiet stock. Once you have done that reopen the hive. The day after or a few days after you can go through the hive to despatch the queen, add new queen. It will be easier to go through as you have siphoned of the foragers. Although you may think they are still aggressive it is manageable. On the original site you could let them raise a queen from the brood comb, as long as it contains eggs and young larvae. You have now made increase or combine before winter.

 

[coffindodger]

In addition, surely hoping the daughter of an agressive colony to be a delight is asking a lot?

Got to be a new fertilised queen. You'll be amazed how quickly they settle down.
Sounds like you're having a problem finding the queen, but are you sure there is a queen? Eggs, larvae? If they're without a queen they'll be extra aggressive.

 

[whoosling]

Got to be a new fertilised queen. You'll be amazed how quickly they settle down.
Sounds like you're having a problem finding the queen, but are you sure there is a queen? Eggs, larvae? If they're without a queen they'll be extra aggressive.

pretty sure there is a queen from what i've been able to see quickly, really I just want rid of the queen and maybe combine the rest of the bees with one of my other hives

 

[Brian Bush]

I have had several hives this year that have been very aggressive. For the first time I had to destroy a hive. Discussing this with my club chairman the other day he said that he has had to help numerous members with very difficult hives. Some of the Beeks were very experienced but their bees were frightening. He said that he had destroyed 4 hives for others this year as they were completely unmanageable. Two of the swarms I collected this year turned out to be evil when I inspected them in the isolation area and I did not dare to pass them on to new members. I have 2 NUCs in differing locations that have this years queens that are also evil. I am thinking that bees across our area are gradually becoming more difficult. I have stopped reminding club members that we all have a collective responsibility to control the number of drones from our aggressive colonies. Unfortunately it falls on deaf ears and many beekeepers forget that their drones are mating with queens from up to 3 miles away. Of course some colonies are so nasty that they are left to their own devices. If bees are that nasty then please do everyone a favor and if you cannot re-queen destroy the colony. There is no pleasure or reward from working with aggressive bees.

 

[Poly Hive]

I had to deal with a very aggressive colony this year. With out a doubt the worst I have had dealings with.

When tackling these it helps to have help, not that I did but... two sets of eyes are better. Experienced eyes mind.

Take anti histimine before.

I put on an extra layer to try to minimise the stinging.

Good gloves and arguably water spray is better than smoke.

In my case I split the brood into two spots, both AWAY from the hive site. Now... I had one box show classic Q+ behaviour and one classic Q- After 4 goes on the Q+ box I left them in pairs and went to the other and spotted her making a run for it on the hive wall. Squash....

So dinna be fooled by the behaviour.

Oh and new queen now happily working away and a lovely calm hive.

Good luck

PH

 

[Fatbee]

I'm fed up with the local drone population. I've accepted that trying to raise my own queens is nigh on impossible. Having bought in from a reputable supplier last year I can't believe the difference. Calm, productive and not trying to swarm at a drop of the hat. £40 well spent (and paid back from increased yield and less management time)

 

[Eyeman]

Was about to take the plunge and deal with a very aggressive hive that I've been putting off for a few visits- used the usual excuses of bad weather!
When taking it apart it struck me that they were very docile. Checked my records that I'd got the right hive.
Found them to be without any BIAS but no signs of QC's so popped a test frame in.
In a weeks time I'll know if they are queenless or there might be virgin running around.
Have read in the past that removing the queen from an aggressive colony can occasionally calm them down!

 

[whoosling]

I have had several hives this year that have been very aggressive. For the first time I had to destroy a hive. Discussing this with my club chairman the other day he said that he has had to help numerous members with very difficult hives. Some of the Beeks were very experienced but their bees were frightening. He said that he had destroyed 4 hives for others this year as they were completely unmanageable. Two of the swarms I collected this year turned out to be evil when I inspected them in the isolation area and I did not dare to pass them on to new members. I have 2 NUCs in differing locations that have this years queens that are also evil. I am thinking that bees across our area are gradually becoming more difficult. I have stopped reminding club members that we all have a collective responsibility to control the number of drones from our aggressive colonies. Unfortunately it falls on deaf ears and many beekeepers forget that their drones are mating with queens from up to 3 miles away. Of course some colonies are so nasty that they are left to their own devices. If bees are that nasty then please do everyone a favor and if you cannot re-queen destroy the colony. There is no pleasure or reward from working with aggressive bees.

What is the best way to destroy the colony will be my next question??

 

[Karsal]

I have a hive of exceptionaly aggressive bees, can anyone give me advice on what to do with them. Even wearing extra protection by about frame 3 there are to many attacking bees for me to carry on to try and find the queen and get rid of her, all trying to get inside my suit from feet to head. Not sure if I should just be rid of them one way or another or find a method to get to the queen and unite the remainder with another hive.

My old mentor told me to keep old dead queens in the freezer. Thaw one out lift the crown board off the top of the hive and place the dead queen in a cage on top of the frames. Wait and with a bit of luck the old queen will pop up to find the interloper. Kill the old queen and re-queen.
Otherwise destroy the colony if they are as bad as you say.

 

[whoosling]

My old mentor told me to keep old dead queens in the freezer. Thaw one out lift the crown board off the top of the hive and place the dead queen in a cage on top of the frames. Wait and with a bit of luck the old queen will pop up to find the interloper. Kill the old queen and re-queen.
Otherwise destroy the colony if they are as bad as you say.

what's the best way to destroy a colony?

 

[madasafish]

Hows the best way to destroy a colony?

Block the hive entrance one evening and put varroa board in. If you have a crownboard with holes then and pour through an open hole.. approx 150mls of petrol.(petrol as it is easiest to get hold of. Celulose thinners works as well I believe). Block up all open holes in crownboard . Replace roof. Leave till pm next day (the sun's heat will ensure fumes are dispersed through colony). You could open sooner but risk some bees still alive.

If no open crownboard holes, then crack open crownboard and slide it sideways so you can pour petrol into hive near centre of crownboard. Do this as gently and quickly as possible so few bees escape. (Help advisable with aggressive bees.. and water spray at the ready..- smoke may inflame them and is a fire risk)

Done that with six hives - AFB. (not a job I wish to repeat)

I suggest doing it evening as few bees flying.

 

[philipm]

Having experienced nasty bees myself I know what you are going through.Split the flying bees from the brood as others have said if you still cannot find the queen in the brood box put a box below, brush the bees into it and then put a queen excluder on top and the brood box on top of that the nurse bees will repopulate the brood leaving the queen in the bottom box.The first time I dealt with my nasty bees I foregot to reunite the flying bees back with the brood box they somehow managed to get a new queen they have been one of my best hives this year.

 

[Fusion_power]

I've dealt with aggressive bees numerous times over the years. Requeening was always successful. It was a different story when I worked an africanized colony in another country. The bees came out so fast and so many of them that in less than a minute I was ready to call it a day and leave. As noted above, requeening is fairly easy by moving the hive and replacing with a hive with a couple of frames of brood. After a day, the parent hive will be depleted of foragers and the queen will be relatively easy to find.

 

[Millet]

I have had mental bees myself but i could never ever pour petrol on them to kill them, i'm sure the roar they make when the petrol is poured would give me nightmares, as a last resort if i could not find the Queen i would rather just shake the full lot out in a hedge a good distance away that way a good number of bees would have a chance of begging there way into another hive

 

[whoosling]

I think petrol would be a really last resort and presumably destroy your equipment but they are starting to annoy my neighbours and I may have to take quick and drastic measures, luckily I also have very understanding neighbours, thanks for all the answers I'll let you know the result when I achieve one.

 

[peteinwilts]

I think petrol would be a really last resort and presumably destroy your equipment but they are starting to annoy my neighbours and I may have to take quick and drastic measures, luckily I also have very understanding neighbours, thanks for all the answers I'll let you know the result when I achieve one.

don't do it!

Suggesting the colony should be killed due to one problem bee is like carpet bombing a town because one of the residents has an ASBO.

IMHO, the only reason to kill bees is disease.

If the queen is the problem, it is not too late to raise your own (despite the weather!).
Alternatively, give them a new queen (prefered BECAUSE of the weather!). Personally, I would use the NUC creation method, and unite.

'If' the issue is genetics, the bees themselves may be grouchy. If this is the case, they will be replaced as the old bees die, and the new bees are born.

Alternatively, defensive bees are great donors for NUC creation.

If you want help dealing with them, PM me. You can't be a million miles away.