Am I the only one who does this...

[newbee 101]

I saw a bee having a tough time getting back in the hive and helped her out with a stick. I dropped her at the hive entrance. She was probably injured or something but I just felt bad watching her struggle to fly. The amazing thing was she got into the group hanging out in the front entrance, and immediatly stuck her butt in the air and started fanning. I guess she still had a little left in her.


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"To bee or not to bee, that is the question"



[This message has been edited by newbee 101 (edited June 26, 2004).]

[JWG]

no...!

[Hayseed]

Also .. No.

[bjerm2]

No, not at all. I have a soft spot for my little girls. I even save thme from the pond, wipe them off and warm them in my hand. Most of the time they like it once in a while I get a suprise. OUCH!
Dan

[Dee]

i saved one from my dog trying to eat it. i think i was too late though

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"The secret of life is not to do what you like, but to like what you do. God promises a safe landing, not a calm passage."

- Author Unknown -

[forestbee]

Me too saved them many time, I also enjoy feeding them by hand by putting a drop of syrup on my finger and from the side of the hive move it slowly into the entrance until a bee jump on it them I move a little bet far way from the hive and watch her drinking and licking it.

You should see my wife when she is putting the queen excluder on the hive if there is a single bee on the rim of the super she stop and blow it away, This is why I usually finish four hive while she is still working in her first.

Last fall she went out of the house yelling at black bear, because he is killing the bees, sure I will do the same but I will be thinking about the honey.

Another black bear came a month ago, in the morning we found 4 destroyed hives, put them together and before I go to work I pledge to her if he come back please don’t go out, may be just on the deck with the pepper spry with you, she called me at noon telling me the bear is back I asked her to start “shooting” a video and I am on my way, the video is about 25 min all screaming and crying “oh no not hive number 28 they are a very good bees”, The inspectors wanted a copy of the video for the Ontario Apiculture also many beekeepers clubs wanted a copy I had to take the sound off the video before I give it to them, It was an interested video though, it was the first time anyone sees a bear while he work a yard

Regards,

[Daisy]

Hi Forestbee,,

I wish I could see that!

I'd want to hear it though.

[forestbee]

Hi Daisy,

I already converted to a digital format, but I didn¡¦t have the time to have it on a web page, but since the swarming season is about to end here so may be I will give it a try, I already started uploading the file to the server this should talk about 12 hours (700MG file with a dial-up connection ƒ¼ )

until then, if you go to our web page at http://www.forestdewhoney.com click on "Photo Gallery" the last two photo I captured them from that video.

Regards

[This message has been edited by forestbee (edited June 26, 2004).]

[chemistbert]

I think I would started "shooting" too. But not film anyways. I generally don't help my bees out. Just not much of softy I guess.

[bjerm2]

I agree with chemistbert, SHOOTING might be a good answer. Have you tried to put up an electric fence? You will need 3 strings starting at 18 inches, 36 inches and 48 inches. That will cover most of the areas where a bear might squeeze in, but then again a nice cold winter night, fire place burning and a bear rug, can't go wrong.
Dan

[Branman]

looks like he went thru what looks like an electric fence. That not good enough to keep bears out?

[bjerm2]

I finaly got my computer to go the the site. I think your right does look like a fence. MMMMM, was the power off, or is the fence not charged enough?
Dan

[CherGarr]

My husband laughs at me because I'll stop in my tracks mowing the lawn until the bees finish with the clover and move on. I just can't run over them!

[bjerm2]

I just go around the clover. Now on my septic bed I have milk weed growing and boy do the bees work that. Also the milk weed has a great smell to it.
Dan
PS When I moved from the city into the country I got rid of all my grass. I'm in the trees with just a garden, and a 10 x 20 foot lawn. The septic area has all milk weed. It takes me 20 min at most to mow. Hate grass. This gives me more time to play with my bees.

[MountainCamp]

You will need to break him of the habit or he will just keeping hitting your hives.
A bear's coat is very thick and works as a good insulator. You need to get the bear's tender points. The end of his noise or mouth.
Bait the fence so that he will stop and get the message.
Take a piece of wire and wrap it around the hot wire at about 18" off the ground. Make the end of the wire into a hook and place beacon, hot dogs, etc on the hook.
Place these around the fence at 8 - 10 foot intervals.
Also, during the dry summer months, always keep the ground spike / ground around it moist.

[forestbee]

Hello All,

Hear is what happened, The evening before he came I was unloading my truck and my little girls went to play in the backyard I turned the fence off (it gives 12K volt charge) after I finished we went out and forgot to turn the fence on again, we cam back late I went to bed and the fence still forgotten
(first time I remember I was 4:00am at bed I think I can fell my bees!!), anyway he came early morning did the damage we fixed it in the morning and turned the fence on, I think he was not too far also he knows now what is in there, he came back keep at noon going through the fence back and forth as if it is not there, when my wife called me at work
I ran back to the house reached my gun and shut him, usually I shoot in the air just to scare them, but what I didn't like with this one is he was kind of start to live in the backyard and this is not good specially when there are young kinds.

When I shut him I was less than 30 feet away from him that is when he saw me and just ran away I hesitated for a second (I was thinking maybe he is not that bad bear after all) then I shut him.

The law here is to call the ministry of natural resources when you shot a bear, so from the tag color on its ear I new that this poor guy was an old bear located from a
park to our area and he has the habit to pay frequent visits to the area residents, When the officer came (He use to be a beekeeper quite it just two years ago!!) he was very impressed by the video and gave me some advice about the fence.

- My fence was 2 to 4 wires one feet apart, he told me the wires shouldn't be more than 8 inches apart anything more than this will be enough for the bear to insert its head in between and hit the wire with its coat which will have no effect, Well I can believe that after seeing the video specially this one was as big as a black bear can be.

- Also baiting the fence with sardine cans or any thing with a strong odder so the bear will come to smell it and he will got zapped in his nose.

- Another thing he mentioned is educated bear better than dead bear, since in I will kill the bear another bear will come and take over his territory but a bear which know its boundary will protect the area from another bear, I think this is true since we had another younger male last year once you yell at him from 100 yard he will run away but one of my neighbors shut him.
(I was saying this educated bear comment to one of my older neighbors he told me "there is no such thing, do you want to go in to the forest with a blackboard and look for bears to educate them! A good bear is a dead bear use your gun, he was so funny)

Anyway since I was so upset at the time the officer told me you did the right thing with this bear, even if we caught him alive we would do the same thing with him since he is old and will not be easy to "teach" and already got more than one chance.


Sorry if I bored you with my bear story, I really wish I can share the video with you, I will keep trying to find a way.

Best Regards,

ForestBee

[athiker]

CherGarr, I stop mowing when there is a bee working clover in front of my lawn mower also. Must be genetic

[sandesoils]

I saw a bee having a tough time getting back in the hive and helped her out with a stick. I dropped her at the hive entrance. She was probably injured or something but I just felt bad watching her struggle to fly. The amazing thing was she got into the group hanging out in the front entrance, and immediatly stuck her butt in the air and started fanning. I guess she still had a little left in her.


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"To bee or not to bee, that is the question"



[This message has been edited by newbee 101 (edited June 26, 2004).]

On Saving Girls:
I save our girls from the pool 4 or 5 times a day. We provide them with soaker hoses in the garden, but each day there are those new ones that don't know about the water supply. We are in So. Cal and it's HOT in our back yard.
Early in the spring I can lift them out of the water with bare hands. But in summer they have become too feisty. When retrieving them out of the pool I'll put them on my shirt, and blott them LIGHTLY about 60 times with the edge of my shirt. Depending on how long they've been in the water determines how long till they come back to life. Guess you could call it bee resusitation.
And yes, we take the girls back to the hive if it's too dark out. But when they are ill or dying and leaving the hive (you can tell the difference), we let them go.

[xC0000005]

Nah, you aren't the only one. My kids insist that I help every bee home. Then there's my 3 year old daughter, who just picks them up in her hand and carries them to the hive. She's been stung a number of times, and yet she continues.

[Ravenseye]

I'll admit to helping them out too. I like when you find them in the snow, bring them in the house, wake them up and run back out to the hive and pop them in.