Interesting drone removal squad! I think a few around are normal and if more start showing up you might start with a entrance reducer but keep in mind you probably have a good flow going on now with late summer- early fall flora. Also keep an eye on any swarmed hives or weak hive especially- if the YJ starts to become bullies -they have to go! B

 

This is the time of year when yellow jackets are done with their own hive jobs. They don't need protein to feed their own young anymore, their queen has laid her eggs for next year and is gone, and they are f-r-e-e to have fun and get drunk on nectar until the frost kills them. So, they're hanging at the local tavern, which happens to be your hives.

I smash them with my hive tool when I see them. We sprayed the nests under the eaves that I had been leaving all summer because yellow jackets do help keep insects under control in the garden in the summer. I now have robber screens on some of my hives anyway and am planning to put the screens on all of them, so hopefully that helps. And yup, I'd keep an entrance reducer on the hives all summer long anyway.

 

The yellow jackets are hanging around my hives also, but are just above the ground in front of the hives, chowing down on what they find there. Once in a while a stray tries to get into a hive, but they are quickly repelled by the bees. If the hives were weak, or the yellow jackets over abundant, there might be a problem, but other than that they are not.

 

Thanks for the responses. They are still hanging around some of the day, morning mostly but they tend to be after anything dead on the ground. Bees don't seem disturbed by them so I will just keep a close eye on them and watch their numbers

 

You might want to reduce the entrance to your hive so it can better defend itself.

 

After a bout of robbing I reduced all my entrances, yellow jacket numbers are going up here, not bad but had been seeing 1-2 hanging around. Yesterday evening there were8-10. I stomp em. They were eating drone parts. I just cant stand them. Been attacked too many times in the past. G

 

If they are doing their job, why kill them and attract something else to clean up those dead bees? Like skunks.

 

Yellow jackets are not harmless to a hive. This is one of many examples you can find:

http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?212791-Help!-Yellowjackets!

 

As is so true about many aspects of beekeeping, a strong colony will take care of itself, most of the time. Yellowjackets have their place in the ecosystem. But killing one or two won't effect the YJ population much, so go ahead if it makes you feel better.

 

Well, if you want mine, I can ship them to you. I also have a huge hornet's nest if you want that too, no way I'm bothering with that one.