Proximity of swarm bait trap to bee tree?

[Intheswamp]

I've got this colony of bees close to the ground in an oak tree. I can put a bait trap close to it. The colony is in a treeline at the edge of a cattle pasture. I can set the trap 1' from the hive or 1000' from the hive across open pasture in some other trees. People talk of catching swarms from their own hives in an empty box sitting right beside the mother colony so would it be good to have the bait hive close by or would several hundred feet be better?

How close is "close enough"?

Thanks,
Ed

[Cleo C. Hogan Jr]

Several hundred feet is normally better. It is hit or miss either way. If I were intent on swarm baiting, ( and I would not be, I would trap) I would set multiple bait hives at varying distances, and hope they like one of them. No guarantee that they will.

cchoganjr

[Keth Comollo]

That looks like the perfect case for a Hogan Trapout!

[Intheswamp]

Well, I hung a trap in the vicinity of the bee tree this morning. Here's an aerial shot of the location. According to the legend I'm thinking it's right at 400' away from the bee tree.

Nice shade with maybe a little early morning sun. Faces to the south directly towards the bee tree across the open pasture. Hanging in an oak tree just over head high and close to the pond.

Trap is camouflaged with an 1/2"x3" entrance (actually 1/2" shorter than I intended but...). The box is an 8-frame deep with medium frames. Small cell starter strips long enough to be embedded into the top frame wire.

Inside of box has a little propolis smeared on the surfaces. Several drops of LGO added.

We'll see how it works. I checked the bee tree out and they were, ahem...busy as bees! ...sorry, couldn't resist.

Ed

[forgeblast]

Do you have to have the trap up high? or can it be on the ground?

[MrHappy]

This is just to try to catch a swarm if and when they do split right? You aren't actually trying to get the bees out of the tree.

I would do like Cleo said and have 3-4 traps if you can. Maybe different distances around the arch. if you can, try to make sure it's on the south side so it gets as much sun as it can, they seem to like that more.

Just a thought

[Intheswamp]

Do you have to have the trap up high? or can it be on the ground?

forgeblast, it seems that they will build at all heights. The mother colony is at basically ground level in the oak tree that they're in.

Ed

[Intheswamp]

This is just to try to catch a swarm if and when they do split right? You aren't actually trying to get the bees out of the tree.

That is correct, just trying to catch a swarm from the bee tree, not trap the bees out of the tree.

I would do like Cleo said and have 3-4 traps if you can. Maybe different distances around the arch. if you can, try to make sure it's on the south side so it gets as much sun as it can, they seem to like that more.

That sounds good, MrHappy...just don't want the landowner to thing I'm trying to surround him. I may end up putting one more on the treeline that the colony is situated in.

As for being in the sun, I'm not so sure about that. First thing is the sun shining on the trap during the middle of the day will be HOT down here in Dixie. The second thing is that the mother colony is situated in the base of a large oak tree in deep shade neighboring a small branch bottom...the area is very moist just beyond it...moist to the point of being sloppy where the cows have been cooling in the muck. The hive is strong and has been there for a long time so they've figured out something on dealing with shb and varroa...that's one reason I want some of those genes!

Ed

[Intheswamp]

Here's some pics of the trap and trap area...

[forgeblast]

[QUOTE=Intheswamp;774554]forgeblast, it seems that they will build at all heights. The mother colony is at basically ground level in the oak tree that they're in.

Ty great pics btw.