Guide to Small Hive Beetle Traps and Treatment

Protecting your apiary from pest infestations and diseases is one of the most important things that you have to do. Pests can cause a number of damages to your hive such as rotting honey, the decline in the bee population, create aggression in bees, and much more. The only way to avoid this is through constant inspections and maintenance of your apiaries. The small hive beetle is one such pest that can cause a lot of problems to your hive. The adult beetles fly into the hive and lay their eggs which hatches and cause the beetle larvae to crawl out. They eat the honeycomb which leads the honey to even flow out of the hive. The waste from the larvae can also cause the honey to start fermenting.

How to Tackle Small Hive Beetles?

Naturally, the honeybees should be able to protect their hives from the adult beetles. However, as the beetles have thick shells which are immune to bee stings, they can lay eggs with ease. The only thing that the bees can do is harass them and try to drive them out of the hives. Even when the eggs are hatched and the larvae start to go around the hives, the bees in the colony still cannot do anything to fight them.

Should you be worried? During the inspection, if you see one or two small hive beetle larvae, it is not a point of much concern. However, if there are a lot of them, then it is definitely dangerous for the hive.

How to control the small hive beetle larvae? The only approach that you can take is to prevent the adult beetles from laying eggs in the hive. This can be done by entrance level defenses. Firstly, a high population of bees in the colony can ensure that the adult beetles are harassed and not allowed to lay eggs. Secondly, you can set up beetle traps to trap unwanted pests.

What are the Available Traps And Treatments?

There are many traps and treatments that are available today. Some of the more prominent and efficient ones are listed below:

1.    Soil Treatments- When the beetle larvae reach a certain size, they leave the hive and then dig into the soil where they pupate into adult beetles. There are many soil treatment chemicals that you can use around your hives to ensure that this process is put to a stop.

2.    Bottom Board Traps- As the bees carry on with their activities, there is a lot of debris that falls from the hive. When using a bottom board trap, the debris which is collected attracts the adult beetles to lay their eggs on. Though the honey bees can easily escape this trap, the larvae are stuck with nowhere to go and can be cleaned out easily. It is reusable and cost-effective.

3.    Beetle Jail Traps- They can be hung between the top bar or the frames. They are traps that are filled with oil which attracts the adult hive beetles. Once they are inside the trap, they have no way to fly out of it. However, care must be taken to see that the oil does not enter the hive.

4.    Chemicals- Though this is not a recommended option and is not used by most beekeepers, there are many chemicals available that can get rid of the beetle infestation. However, they may also damage your own bees and colonies in the process.