Think again. The elegant and complex nests shown below were built this summer in two of my three swarm traps. I’ve been using the same three flowerpot-shaped traps for perhaps ten years, hanging them each year from the same three trees. In early spring, we go trudging up the hill with a ladder and the […] Read more
If you are in the northern hemisphere, there’s a good chance you are in a nectar dearth or approaching one. A nectar dearth is simply a shortage of nectar-producing flowers. Summer dearths are usually caused by high temperatures, a lack of rainfall, or both. Honey bee workers may become irritable, or they may beard on […] Read more
Every year I put swarm traps in the trees and place bait hives around the property. Most years I catch two or three swarms, sometimes more. So far this season I’ve captured two, both swarms from my own hives. But yesterday I happened to notice other things in my traps. The lizard below is apparently […] Read more
No matter how many yellowjackets you’ve dealt with this past summer, I’m sure it was nothing like this. The nest in this video was filmed in central Florida where southern yellowjackets, and many other wasp species, can overwinter. According to Jonathan Simpkins, the entomologist/pest control guy who shot the video, this nest is six-and-a-half feet […] Read more
Colony death by yellowjacket is common, but I’ve never heard as many yellowjacket stories as I have this year. People describe how colonies that seemed strong a month earlier are now gone, replaced by yellowjacket scavengers. Or they describe seeing yellowjackets freely entering the hive and seizing prey, undeterred by guards. What is going on? […] Read more
A long stretch of freezing weather is the best wasp control. Many of the overwintering queens succumb to the cold, which limits the nest density the following spring. But after a mild winter such as we had on the Pacific Northwest coast, the queens thrive in vast numbers. This is the worst year I have […] Read more
Due to hot and dry weather in many areas, beekeepers are already messing with robbers. I’ve heard sad stories from beekeepers whose full honey supers suddenly turned up empty, and others whose smaller colonies were wiped out. This is not unusual, but it can bewilder new beekeepers. Besides taking the honey, the presence of robbing […] Read more