[Colby828]

I checked the bottom boards in my hive this afternoon and one of them had a lot of small hive beetle larva squirming around on in. What is the best way to treat this hive to get rid of them. I have seen a few beetles in the past and always mashed them, but this is the first larva i have seen.

 

[GaryG74]

Do you have screened bottom boards or solid? Sometimes I find small wax moth and hive beetle larva on the plastic board under the screened bottom board where they are eating the wax debris, dropped pollen, etc. that fell through the screen. I just dump the garbage and the larva where the fire ants can get them and clean the board off and re-insert it if I want it in the hive. If I need ventilation, I leave the board out. Usually the bees will keep the garbage cleaned out if they can get to it so the SHB and wax moth larva are not a problem. Use beetle traps between frames or one of the oil trays under the screened bottom board. You can find DIY plans or buy pre-made trays from suppliers.

 

[Colby828]

I learned a valuable lesson this afternoon, my OCD kicked in and I made a DIY trap for each hive using the CD's and boric acid paste. Here is where I learned my lesson, just before dark I went to the hives to put the traps in, I had no problems at first, then it started to sprinkle a little and the bees turned into dive bombers.

I did see a couple of beetles, I mashed them but did not see anymore larva, I will check closer when I do inspections on Saturday.

 

[ruthiesbees]

I have a screened bottom in my TBH with an IPM board. My plan for the larvae that drop thru is to put a thin layer of diatomaceous earth on the IPM board. I used a mix of Crisco and Horticultural oil last year but didn't like having to scrape the goop off, and didn't like the hydrocarbon smell near the hive. Hoping it will also work on any mites that fall thru. They certainly got stuck in the oil goop, so that's always an option.

 

[AstroBee]

Its been my experience that once you see larvae actively moving in the comb, the beetles have either gotten or are about to get the upper hand in the fight. Decisive action is usually required. Are bee populations high enough to manage the space provide? Physically removing the larvae is the only approach that I've found to work. Freeze any comb with larvae. What level of larvae infestation are we talking about?

Does it look like the 3rd picture down in this link: http://www.clemson.edu/extension/beekeepers/factsheets/small_hive_beetle_ap2.html

 

[Colby828]

No it doesnt look that bad, i saw 20 to 30 larva on the bottom board. I have screened bottom boards and pulled that one just to check it and thats what I saw. Last night when I opened the hive did not look as bad as I thought, i did see two or three beetles and killed them. I will do a full inspection Saturday morning to get a full perspective of whats going on. This was a new package install from April and is the strongest of the two hives, hopefully they havent gotten out of control yet and I lose this hive. I just installed the first honey super last weekend and didnt see all of this then.