mites in a cell

[beemandan]

That's the beauty of a well timed OA treatment.

I have yet to do an OA or formic fall/winter treatment. It is on my list of things to try....just hasn't reached the top yet. I'd probably be smart to reprioritize my list.....but I'm not always smart..... per your signature quote.

[jmgi]

beemandan, going back to what you said, I am leaning towards thinking that the mite doesn't know a previously invaded cell, I think what it boils down to is more mites than available brood, more nurse bees than brood, possibly more mites per nurse bee. I don't know if a foundress mite prefers to have a larvae to herself or not, who knows, but we do know that multiple mites sometimes end up in a single cell. John

[jim lyon]

Keep us posted if you are considering a spring post nuc Hopguard treatment. I am intrigued by it and may try a test with it this spring. I am really afraid of doing it on the whole outfit without hearing or experiencing myself what the results might be. We have had one positive posting recently about it's use in this manner.

[beemandan]

Jim, I did a midsummer round of hopguard...temps ninety plus....and can tell you that at those temps it isn't as benign as they claim.
John, this summer I was inspecting some brand new...pristine white brood comb and was shocked at how many mites I saw walking on it in search of a perfect brood cell. After a couple of brood cycles the comb is too dark for me to see them very easily...but on the white comb...man alive did they stand out! Some enterprising grad student with a low light video camera and some new comb could record a couple of days and answer the question of whether or not they avoid mite occupied brood cells.

[JRG13]

Dan, I applied in those temps, didn't see anything adverse, except my bees get angry when I go to put a strip in, and any bees that get slimed really bad with the product will die.

[beemandan]

I had posted several photos from my midsummer application but these seem to be the only that I still have online.
The first shows a typical application.



The second shows a frame of brood….and in the middle you can see where the strip rested and brood was removed. They actually gnawed the comb down to the point that those cells were not used again. Notice too that the nearer you get to where the strip rested, the spottier the brood pattern.




I also experienced a noticeable increase in queen loss and supercedures. Maybe those queens got ‘slimed’ but it was nearly ten percent….and that seems pretty high to me for a coincidental contact.

When I use them this upcoming spring I’ll have caged queens so I can avoid any direct contact….hopefully that will help.

[Axtmann]

Beemandan why don't you placed the strips on top of the frames instead of hanging them between the frames? Did the hopguard strips killed the brood or ignored the queen the empty cells on your picture?

[beemandan]

Beemandan why don't you placed the strips on top of the frames instead of hanging them between the frames?

The instructions for the strips tell you to hang them the way I did.

Did the hopguard strips killed the brood or ignored the queen the empty cells on your picture?

It killed the brood beneath and some that was nearby.

[jmgi]

Nice pictures Dan, interesting to see the effects the strips have on the brood in the area. Do you install two strips for every brood box on the hive? John

[beemandan]

It depends on the population and brood. Most of my hives are double deeps. Remember, too, this application was mid summer. With a big population and brood in both deeps, I would use two strips per box. Lower population and maybe only one or two frames with brood in the top box...I'd use two strips in the bottom and one in the top....and if all the brood is in the bottom, two strips in the bottom and none in the top.