Small Hive Beetle Trap

I guess at some point or other every beekeeper has to deal with small hive beetles.  We've been dealing with ours here for a few weeks, and it seems like we're getting the upper hand.  We've got lots of lines of defense in place, and each one of them is catching beetles.  I'm open to helpful suggestions in the comments section below.

Got the idea for this contraption on YouTube. It's quite a simple concept, really.  To build one you'll need a 10-foot 2x4 (I used treated), #6 hardware cloth with a footprint big enough to cover the floor of the hive, a piece of plywood (I used 3/4 inch), and an 8-foot 2x2.  Finally you'll need screws or nails to hold it all together.

The holes in the #6 screen are big enough for the beetles to climb through, but too small for the honey bees.

The aluminum tray I purchased for $2 at a discount store, and it slides in from the back of the hive.  The tray is given a layer of canola oil (supposed to have the least odor) to about half of its depth.  The 2-inch depth of the tray allows for the forward tilt of the hive with no oil spillage when carefully removing the tray.

Tomorrow my wife and I plan to do some inspecting and super-shifting, so we plan to install at least one of these at that time.  We also need to combine a weak colony with a strong one, otherwise the weak one is not going to survive the winter.  I'll let you know how that goes.

Monday, September 18, 2017

Sunrise: 6:31 am

Sunset: 7:46 pm

Temperature at Noon: 90 degrees

Sun's Angle at Noon: 59 degrees

UV: High

Humidity: 54%