I do have an infestation of hive beetle in my hives . I have 2 at the moment. Recenetly when cleaning the bottom slide i also found a few larvae from the hive beetle. I have noticed in this hive that the hive does not appear to be as strong as the latest hive next to it.
I am concerned about the damage that can be caused by the hive beetle and its larvae.
I have used a number of non chemical traps which work to a small degree.
I am wondering if anyone has used the APITHOR beetle trap in a Flow hive and if it has been successful at all.
I use Apithor and rarely use much else now. The screened bottom of the Flow might be an issue, but you could try running it under the screen on the corflute. Make sure the opening ends of the Apithor don’t point towards the front of the hive (point to the sides) to limit light getting into the trap.
Thankyou for that if the beetle get much worse i think i will give it a go.
Well inot summer here now so i gues the humidity and heat here at the moment are just right for the beetle to thrive.
Do you know if the APITHOR attracts the beetle or does it just rely on them to find there way inside?
cheers
Now that you ask that I’ve realised my previous suggestion won’t work too well. The trap works on the bees harassing/corralling the beetles in the trap. I am sure some will seek refuge in the trap if the conditions are right, but you really want bees to have access to the beetles.
The manufacturer advises against running the traps on screened bottoms unfortunately.
I put an Apithor on the bottom board and on top of the super, beetles run into the trap to hide from the bees where the fipronol gets them. I have never seen dead bees caused by an Apithor but you do need to think about your placement to make sure no condensation or rain water will enter the trap causing the fipronol to leach out. A hive mat over the top will help. They are good as @RBK will attest.