[myrdale]

I'm starting to find a few more beetles in my hives. Apart from having a strong colony, what is the best method for eradicating beetles?

I've got a pack of the traps on order that you fill with oil and hang between the frames.

I also have a pack of the square black traps on order. But I haven't found much in the way of detailed information on what bait to put in these.

What is the most effective baits to use? What's legal? What's illegal (in general)? Some references I've seen include:

Taktic, Mavrik, Advion Syngenta Gel, Diatomaceous Earth, Crisco & Boric Acid, varoius oils, & mystery pastes.

 

[SWM]

If you aren't seeing any damage from SHB larvae then the bees are keeping them under control. Traps may become necessary at some point but a few adult beetles running around are annoying but cause no damage. Again, the larvae are the problem.

 

[psm1212]

I have heard Advion works very well. But I cannot put roach bait in my hives. Even with supers off. Plus, it is illegal.

I have dozens of SHB scurrying about when I pull off the cover. They do not seem to affect the health of my colonies. Traps are a pain. I don't use them.

 

[AzaleaHill]

Take a few moments to kill the SHB during inspections.
If they are really infesting an drawn, empty super, take the time to rap each one on the cover knock out the SHB hiding inside the comb. Then rag your hive tool over them. I have found them to be fairly soft and easily damaged.

My SHB load has come down considerably in the past month since I started to kill them.
But then, I only have 10 hives to take care of.

 

[Jim Braun]

I use a screened bottom board with an oil pan under it. I'm a hobbyist with and I made my own, I saw that Dadant now sells these. I just noticed that one of my yards had a lot in the pan today. Last year I saw hardly any SHB.

 

[myrdale]

Thank you all for the input.

I had started off with screen bottom boards. Around mid-summer I found one of the boards was covered with what I was assuming at the time to be hive beetle larva mixed in with all of the debris. I eliminated those.

Typically during inspections I might see four or five scattered though out the hive and I do kill them as I see them.

What prompted this post was I looking in a split and counted twelve total.