Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1900-07-13

4 Little Strategy Il Necessary to En-
trap Them and Then TurA
Them to Account.

Bees do not select the colonies near
est them to rob, nor do they confine
themselves to their own apiary, but |
may go miles away and rob neighbor-
ing bees. Bees may come from the
forests, what we term wild bees" and
prey upon our domesticated ones. Rob
Der bees may be caught in trap, but
this would damage our own or our
neighbors' bees, but may be worked
successfully on the wild bees. Take a
tight box with bottom in which is
a two-inch hole; insert in this wire
cloth cone the shape OF funnel, and
just large enough at the small end to
. let bee pass, and two inches at the
other to suit hole in bottom. The cone
may be three OF four inches long, and
the small end extend up into the box,
and the box to be covered with wire
screen with small mesh to confne the
bees. Set this on an ordinary hive that
contains some honey and place it con-
'venient to the robbers. The robber
bees will pass in at the entrance, load
up with honey, and, seeing the light d.
rectly above them, will go up to it, pass
up through the wire cone and into the
empty chamber and there remain.
Enough bees will go out Of the ordi-
nary entrance of the hive to go homo
and bring others with them. and thus
| keep up the work until all the working
| force of the robber bees are entrapped.
These bees may be turned to account
by giving them frames OF comb and
honey, and also q frame or two OF
brood from other colonies. They should
be confined three or four days before
letting out, for II left out soon they
will 90 back to their former home.
There are several methods of stop
ping cases of robbing when once thor
oughly at it. The quickest way Is te
throw a blanket over the entire hive
that is being robbed, and thus entirely
cover the hive, with the edges OF the
blanket spreading out az far on the
ground as it will reach. occasionally
picking up q corner OF the blanket ia
let out the robbers and to let In the
occupants Of the hive. In this manner
we will soon get all the robbers out and
all the bees belonging to the hive In
This simply checks it for the present
but does not cure the case. The colony
should be examined late In the evening
or early in the morning to ascertain 1t.
condition. In nine cases out OF ten, or
I might say, ninety nine cases out OF
hundred, 1t will be found without
queen, and the remedy is to supply i
with one OF two frames OF young brook
from other colonies, and also to intro
duce q queen to it, II there Is any q
hand. ia.
How to readily detect a case OF rob
bin1 requires some experience, and un
less one makes a close study OF bees b
can hardly know when it occurs. Usu
ally there 10 an unusual uproar at
hive being robbed. The bees will com
. out of the hive heavily loaded wit
honey, and those going in will loo
slim and lank, which 10 quite the r.
verse Of bees working In their naturs
way. When a case Of robbing is goin
on, all other hives near will be see
fighting the robbers, for the neighbol
l ing hives will be Waited by them alst
]. but these hives, being in good cond
/ ton, will defend themselves, and tn
i result is more or less fighting.
t Preventing 10 always better tina
D remedies, and II all colonies are kept
i proper condition they will never fall
n prey to robbers, and in about ever
r case Of robbing may be laid to careless
II ness ON the part OF the apiarist.-A. !
n Duff, in National Rural.