hello good sirs and misses,
i am looking for ideas to help the bees (mostly returning queens) find their home in a sea of homes. the idea i tried so far was to staple some colored felt to the bottom of the hive to use as a landing board. this worked but two bees lost their legs and one died from getting stuck. this was unacceptable and i have aborted the idea. maybe i could paint something clear over the felt to limit its fuzzing.
until i hear a better solution i will probably go with adding a piece of the colored felt which (~cost usd 10 cents) on the top and wrap it along the edge of the cover. this will allow the bees which predominantly descend from high above to see their box easier.
any better ideas?
i thought about stickers and if i can find some packs for a reasonable price (less than 50 cents per hive) i will move forward with that idea.
what say you?