[crofter]

One of the ways of identifying shrews is that their droppings have a distinctive spiral twist to them.

 

[massbee]

Arent' they also bigger than mouse droppings?
I'm very concerned since this hive was a small cluster going into winter. I don't need this thing making things worse.

 

[crofter]

Arent' they also bigger than mouse droppings?
I'm very concerned since this hive was a small cluster going into winter. I don't need this thing making things worse.

Shrews can be from 2 to 5 inches long. Smaller than a mouse to larger than a mouse.

 

[patncin]

i dont think mice eat bees they just move in(for the warmth) and mouse everything up and the bees cant keep a cluster and slowly die off till the hive is to weak to survive this is a bucket trap

 

[Cloverdale]

I think this is mice, that hive in another yard was empty, so we thought; it doesn’t radiate the warmth of a cluster like other images

 

[massbee]

Shrews can be from 2 to 5 inches long. Smaller than a mouse to larger than a mouse.

Sorry I meant the droppings specifically. Aren’t the shrew droppings bigger than mouse droppings?

 

[username00101]

@Cloverdale.

In this case, the shrews are in control.

The Jewish faith is impressive too, though, but I think the shrews ability to fit through a hole 3/8 inch or smaller is more impressive.

 

[crofter]

Sorry I meant the droppings specifically. Aren’t the shrew droppings bigger than mouse droppings?

I was just suggesting that perhaps the ones from the smaller shrews might not be larger than the typical mouse. I have not had enough problems with them specifically to be "reading of the tea leaves". If I remember correctly shrews are not rodents. They may have a lot of hair and bone matter in the scat and be much larger, so you may be entirely correct.

You have to "know your sh!t" to be a big dog in this game.

 

[massbee]

I measured my mouse guards today. They are all 3/8. Sigh.

 

[massbee]

I wonder if OAVapor would kill a shrew?

 

[fieldsofnaturalhoney]

I wonder if OAVapor would kill a shrew?

I don't know about kill, but there are older threads where beeks have ran out mice and shrews that made themselves a home in the box.

 

[patncin]

it runs them out but they come back

 

[massbee]

Thanks!

 

[psfred]

So far I've not had a mouse or shrew problem in my beehives. Cars, house, and especially pole barn, yes, bee not so far.

I have my hives on painted angle iron stands for the most part, 16" high. I don't think the mice and shrews can climb the painted angle iron well enough to get up there, and I use 3/8" high entrances, maybe a bit smaller. Will keep mice out for sure, but not shrews.

Getting them out in the winter is a problem as it's necessary to unstack the hive, and that's a bad idea if it's below 55F. At that temp the bees will take care of them anyway as they will sting them to death, but when they are clustered I guess shrews will eat them. Mice just make a huge mess by ripping up the comb and making a nest in there, plus they eat the pollen and honey they can get to.

 

[Gir]

Try a mouse trap on your landing board, Hateful women would do less damage. Ask your county AG Agent about a fix.

Ask your county AG Agent about a fix for Hateful womens?

 

[Roland]

The "Bull of the Woods" would say that it was the constant interuptions from the mice , making the bees break cluster, that killed the bees.

Crazy Roalnd

 

[JWPalmer]

Roland, I have missed hearing about the "Bull of the Woods". He is one smart fellow!

 

[Cloverdale]

Sorry I meant the droppings specifically. Aren’t the shrew droppings bigger than mouse droppings?

Shrew droppings are blunt ended, whereas mouse are tapered.

 

[Craig Shevlin]

Has anyone else noticed a large increase in the mouse population as I have? I live in the country and I am always battling mice, but this year was something else. I really had to step up my game this year, especially after they cost me over 1k in car repairs from chewed wires. To be fair to the mouse community, chipmunks may have chewed the wires, but there was a mouse nest under the hood so I am blaming them. My mechanic said he knows of people that had to total their cars due to electrical issues caused by mice. J

I lost a Jeep to mice chewing on wires and then started a fire,

 

[Pchristu]

I’ve lost one hive in 5 winters and it was surely to a shrew. Booming, healthy hive in November; next week silent. Dead and dismembered on the bottom board; all capped brood areas chewed up, all honey intact. o