Wasps

[Oliver Cameron-Swan]

I have set a new queen, in cage with attendants, up in a hive with some brood on frame, nurse bees, and sealed honey.
I can see a lot of wasps visiting the colony (robbing?).
Should I close the hive up to keep the wasps out while the new queen works her way out of the cage or leave it all alone?
The colony is in a brood box with crown board and roof. Have ordered a new hive for the colony, waiting on delivery.

 

[pargyle]

You are chancing your arm with them in a brood box .. it's just too much space for them to defend - even if you have a small entrance they are going to be trying to look after the brood in there ... and if the wasps have found them they are doomed - the wasps will rob it out, and the battles (if there are any) are going to decimate whaever bees there are in there ...

You need to get them into a Nuc with the smallest entrance you can give them - preferably engineer a wasp screen or a tube entrance that they can defend. I would also move the colony to another position in the apiary ... but unless they can defend it - if the wasps find it they are going to be in trouble.

There are lots of designs for anti robbing screens - this is the general idea .. the wasps try to fly through the mesh - the bees soon learn there is another entrance... I make the entrance to the robbing screen as small as possible.

https://cookevillebeekeepers.com/how-to-make-a-simple-robber-screen/

 

[Amari]

I have set a new queen, in cage with attendants, up in a hive with some brood on frame, nurse bees, and sealed honey.
I can see a lot of wasps visiting the colony (robbing?).
Should I close the hive up to keep the wasps out while the new queen works her way out of the cage or leave it all alone?
The colony is in a brood box with crown board and roof. Have ordered a new hive for the colony, waiting on delivery.

That's worrying Oliver. 2020 was a bad wasp year for many of us in various parts of the country but I've seen hardly any so far this season. Has the hive lots of bees? - the best defence against wasps is a strong colony.
Close the hive entrance down to one bee-space. Consider covering the entrance with a horizontal tunnel made from electrical ducting. I think Pargyle and Drex have posted a design. Consider moving the hive a mile or two away to a new site.
The colony may be doomed, despite the above manoeuvres, if it's not strong.

 

[Worker bee]

If your getting wasps Rob then move the hive to a new location if possible. You can move it back later. If its weak they will keep robbing and it will likely get much worse. Move it about