Trapping 2020 - success rate?

16504 Views 166 Replies 34 Participants Last post by Cobbler, Jan 26, 2021

GregB

Discussion Starter · Apr 9, 2020

To continue the trend (see Trapping 2018/2019 - success rate)....
I figure I start the 2020 thread so to post/read capture rates in a single place (vs. scanning the entire forum).

Sounds like the commotion down south already started.

1 - 20 of 167 Posts

beemandan

· #2 · Apr 9, 2020

I've collected three from the trees and caught one in a trap.
I was working nearby when I heard the swarm moving into the trap. They've all been huge. I got a video of the one going into the trap....I just don't know when I'll get it up.

Gray Goose

· #3 · Apr 9, 2020

Its early snowing out right now, I still do not have any out, still building them.

I'll offer success stories thought, it may be 6 weeks from now.

GG

AR1

· #4 · Apr 9, 2020

Gray Goose said:
Its early snowing out right now, I still do not have any out, still building them.

I'll offer success stories thought, it may be 6 weeks from now.

GG

Snowed here today. Have one trap out, even though way too early. Looking to get serious end of April early May.

Gray Goose

· #5 · Apr 9, 2020

AR1 said:
Snowed here today. Have one trap out, even though way too early. Looking to get serious end of April early May.

:thumbsup: Timing sounds about right. The Day I see drones on the landing board of My hives will be the day I am full out trapping.
Building them in the shop now, Coated a few with Propolis tincture sat. made a bottom yesterday , stapled together two lids at lunch, heading out to paint, tonight.

Looks like I should be able to make 8-10. If I put them out too soon the ants move in, and early Bear and **** appetites need be sated as well.
I like the first swarms, plan this year to make several 2 Box traps, Been thinking of the BIG one that can't fit the reg traps.

Deep and a medium, should do it.

GG

JWPalmer

· #6 · Apr 10, 2020

i collected a swarm three weeks ago that provided me with a second mated queen a week later. I have run out of room already and only have one trap out. I gave my others away to a friend that needed boxes for nucs.

AR1

· #7 · Apr 10, 2020

We have 'post your bloom dates' and 'post your swarm dates' forums, which I have spent quite a bit of time looking over.
I think we need a new forum 'Post your drone dates' where we note things like first drone spotted, many drones flying, and what date drones are driven out to die in the fall.

AR1

· #8 · Apr 12, 2020

I think I need to rethink my timing. I took a look at the 'post your swarm dates' forum for the state due north of me, Wisconsin. I am in far northern Illinois, but even southern WI is distinctly colder and snowier than here most years. I see lots of swarm dates posted in April and May, so I don't see any reason there shouldn't be swarms here too.

My earliest caught swarms here have been in late May, but that may just be that I have not been trapping very long. I see no drones yet in any of my hives.

I'd suggest other new trappers look in the swarm dates forum and at the state north of your own.

Litsinger

· #9 · Apr 12, 2020

AR1 said:
I think we need a new forum 'Post your drone dates' where we note things like first drone spotted, many drones flying, and what date drones are driven out to die in the fall.

Good suggestion, AR1... and like you I try to keep tabs of swarm action in states to the South, East and West of me to get some sense of what i should be expecting in my locale.

First swarm here in Western Kentucky was on April 4th, which is 20 days earlier than last year. It was also from one of my overwintered colonies (#1912) and was at only 200 GDD, suggesting (to me anyway) that the supplemental syrup feeding I gave them in the fall pushed them out earlier than Nature would have otherwise.

AR1

· #10 · Apr 13, 2020

I was told in Ag college that the planting season advanced one week for every 100 miles south you go. So Kentucky should be roughly 4 weeks ahead of northern Il.
Illinois is 390 miles north to south.

Tigger19687

· #11 · Apr 15, 2020

I put out 2 hives, both 1 deep with foundation-less frames, LGO and some Beeswax 'dots' I have from making Lip Balm. I figured why not try to see if I can get some Scout bees to check it out

These are next to each other as it is where my Hives will be placed. I was going to get a Nuc or maybe a pkg (and feed heavy in an inside feeder) I have not had bees before so no comb or anything else.
Crossing fingers so see what comes my way.

Yesterday with it being sunny and 60º I had a couple bees (with pollen) stop at my deck to rest (?). They just sat there and it looked like their butts were moving like they were breathing heavy- did that make sense? I got one on a stick and put it at the entrance of one hive. She left in about a min but hoping she comes back :kn:

WaverlyBees

· #12 · Apr 15, 2020

Collected swarm out of a tree this past Sunday. Neighbor called yesterday and said there were more bees in the same spot so I went by after work and yep there was a softball size cluster on the same limb. Not sure if it is just more bees from the same swarm or another swarm all together. I'm thinking more bees from the same swarm. I'll collect them today.

Litsinger

· #13 · Apr 16, 2020

AR1 said:
I was told in Ag college that the planting season advanced one week for every 100 miles south you go. So Kentucky should be roughly 4 weeks ahead of northern Il.
Illinois is 390 miles north to south.

AR1:

This makes good sense- and I appreciate you posting it. Good rule-of-thumb to keep in mind when I hear about swarms to the South of me in coming years.

Sorry for my delay in reply as I have been away from the computer.

Russ

Russ

ghost1230

· #14 · Apr 16, 2020

SE Iowa here. I checked my overwintered hive Sunday and had a lot of sealed drone comb. Looked at the landing board Wednesday and saw a drone on it.
Might be early here also. About 30 miles north of Mo.

pmartens

· #15 · Apr 27, 2020

Lubbock, TX, here, and just hived my first swarm of the season today, after it moved into the trap a week ago. Which is to say, my first swarm ever! Just starting out.

I did have a small swarm move into the trap in late March and then leave (leaving behind a couple small comb sections, a few dozen eggs, and 6 stalwart workers, who died off)

StonyCreekBees

· #16 · Apr 29, 2020

2

Collected my first swarm of the season! I’m in Southwest Virginia. Our temps lately have been kinda cool for this time of year and been very windy and a bit rainy. This whole month has shown the weather typical of March for my area (windy and rainy). However today my boss sent me a text and said she had a swarm in some bushes. So I grabbed a box and went over. It was a small swarm, bigger than a softball but smaller than a basketball. Maybe a tad smaller than a volleyball. But they likely came out of a tree about 15-20 ft away where she says there have always been bees for at least 15 years. It was the easiest swarm collection I’ve done. Well, not counting the ones that fly right into an empty hive or the ones that go in my swarm traps. I just snipped the main branch and sat them in my box and scooped the remainders off the bush and put them inside the box. It was late in the evening (around 7:30) and in the low 50s so they weren’t flying around all that much. Hopefully in the morning I’ll get around to transferring them into a hive. I have a deadout from this past winter that I’ve neglected to clean out. I knew swarm season was creeping up on me but with the weather lately I wasn’t expecting any activity yet. Now that swarm season is in swing I need to get my swarm trap fixed and hung up!

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GregB

Discussion Starter · #17 · May 18, 2020

OK, our swarming season is here and now.
I will be running 7 locations.
Potentially, I will go rogue and sneak in a couple more into the near fishing and trapping area just because I can.

Within a couple of hours I put up a scented bait onto my back porch, I got scouts checking my used equipment already.
Was setting up a trap nearby - curious bees came before I was even done.
Was interesting to observe how the bees from clearly two different locations came - two different groups of the scouts were markedly different.

Though at other places nobody showed up yet, for as long as I was working there.

This year I am doing experimentation - self-made queen pheromone scent, recycling the queens.
As far as I can tell - it does not hurt and maybe helps - bees are coming for sure.

Mason jar Glass Plant Drink

Also regarding putting up bait hives up - by a large part, the highly placed bait simply helps to distribute the scent better.
Instead of struggling the box high up, I put up a ziplock bag with a scent source as high as I can reach - this is to help the scent distribution by wind.
The trap hive simply sits on the ground level just below the bait - once the bees zero onto the location, nicely primed and well used hive is impossible to miss.

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welder 59

· #18 · May 18, 2020

I have 3 traps out. So far 1 for 3.

https://youtu.be/3yrlrx3by8U

odfrank

· #19 · May 18, 2020

The log on top led to your success.

welder 59 said:
I have 3 traps out. So far 1 for 3.

https://youtu.be/3yrlrx3by8U

GregB

Discussion Starter · #20 · May 18, 2020 (Edited)

odfrank said:
The log on top led to your success.

Smell of rotten wood what led the bees to hollow trees for millions of years.

Outside of bee smell (dead or alive colony) - all they had to go on was the smell of rotten wood.

Speaking of the rotten wood:
- get a plastic bag full of old wood chips and old bark and such
- make them moist
- puncture the bag few times (actually I would use the grocery bags from potatoes/apples already pre-punctured)
- place the bag on top of your trap (moist the contents every time you check the trap)
I think this is as good as a log, if not better.

Of course, well primed equipment may not be needing the extra hassle.

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