BajaNomad

HELP!! Need baja BEE advice

shari - 4-20-2008 at 01:26 PM

So all those posts about the gorgeous wildflowers...what this has created is a serious BEE infestation. One of our casitas had a long history of Bee tenants...so dear Kevin carefully moved the hive...bees made another one in the wall so he took the wall off and removed the next hive...he tried dousing the new inhabitants with soapy water, WD40, bleach but they keep coming back and building new hives in different places between the walls. Does anyone know what repels bees? We are at our wits end...like a Bee grade bad movie...Kevin is losing his cool and ready to torch the place to get rid of them. A place where bees have lived a long time...do they tell their offspring and extended family about the great place in Asuncion and they all come er what? We are desperate!

sd - 4-20-2008 at 01:44 PM

Lots of good advice on the web. Be sure to remove any honey, comb and wax, and clean thouroughly with soap and water after all the bees are gone, If not, the smell attracts another colony.

If available to you, Carbaryl (Sevin) 5 percent dust insecticide can be used, and may need to be reapplied to get rid of future colonies.

Good luck.

jorgie - 4-20-2008 at 01:56 PM

an repellent is available that "kills" the hive but not the bees. bees will not return to a disused hive, they look for a new area to build. the world is losing bees .........ya want more wildflowers right ???

CaboRon - 4-20-2008 at 02:49 PM

I would respectfully suggest that you find an American contractor who knows how to seal up your walls. On a finished structure there should be no way for them to get in.
Then use the products discussed to clean out the wall before sealing.

Diver - 4-20-2008 at 03:47 PM

I thought the all-Mexican cure would work - spray diesel on it !! :biggrin:

Diver - 4-20-2008 at 03:48 PM

Wait, I know Kevin has VODKA !!
Not for the bees but it should help him "cope" !! :lol:
.

Capt. George - 4-20-2008 at 04:56 PM

How about Windex, it worked on all in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"..

Iflyfish - 4-20-2008 at 05:14 PM

I used to tend five hives. Bees are becoming endangered and are very valuable indeed.

They live in hives and then send out new queens that start new hives. The idea is to find them a new home. When they have swarmed and not yet built you can blow smoke on them and put them in a container for transport. Ever seen those guys with bee beards, They have smoked the bees and scraped them on their cheeks.

Are there any bee keepers in GN? or in your area. Find a bee supply house in the area and see if they have somone who does bee removal. These are very valuable and there is a lot of use for them in the agricultural area. These bees may have left bee hives in the area. They are commercially used to pollinate

Smoke calms them down so you can move them. Mexicans have traditionaly used Marijuana for this purpose and it makes the task more pleasant.

If I were in your situation I would first find a local bee keeper or bee supply house who might want these swarms. I noticed a lot of bee hives in Baja and lots of honey for sale.

Secondly I would see if someone localy is interested in starting a bee keeping/honey business and see that they get training and equipment. It does not require a lot. Get hive boxes where the bees can live and then "supers" or boxes that stack on top of the boxes to store excess honey. If you have a keeper around then they have access to a cash crop.
Equipment required is simple. A smoker, a tool, like a small pry bar, a box made to store hive slats, and slats. Extracting can be done by centrofuge or by scraping off the tops and draining. The hives need to be periodicaly tended.

Get some bee attractant from the bee supply house and put it where you want them to start their hives.

If eradicating is your only goal then cleaning and sealing is the way to go. They will return to the sites that have the odor.

Since this will be a long term problem finding or developing a professional to deal with it might be the best long term solution.

Iflyfishwhennoteatingmyfavoritetupalohoneythoughthemexicancactushoneycanbeamazing

Iflyfish - 4-20-2008 at 06:19 PM

I am doing some research on this topic and found the following regarding Africanized Bees:

http://www.ensenada.net/noticias/?id=6200

These can be very nasty critters indeed. It is clear that there is a Mexican Goverment agency involved in this issue and you may find a link here. My Spanish is not good enough. It is important for others to know about Africanized Bees, they are dangerous, others not so.
Confirman Abejas africanas en B.C.
Nota publicada el 4 de mayo de 2005
Por Elizabeth Vargas
Con el fin de prevenir accidentes relacionados con los “Piquetes de Abeja Africanizada”, la Secretaría de Agricultura, Ganadería, Desarrollo Rural, Pesca y Alimentación (SAGARPA) en Baja California, informa sobre algunas acciones que se han llevado a cabo para proteger a la población humana, ya que actualmente estamos en la temporada alta de floración.


El Jefe del Programa para el Control de la Abeja Africanizada de SAGARPA, MVZ Juan José Aguilera Alcántara, informó que la Secretaría en coordinación con los grupos de Protección Civil del Estado, en especial con el Cuerpo de Bomberos, se han dado a la tarea de retirar enjambres silvestres, tanto de la ciudad como del Valle de Mexicali para reducir los riesgos de accidentes.


Adicionalmente, dijo, se han coordinado con los productores apícolas establecidos en todo el Estado, para que coadyuven en el retiro de enjambres silvestres aprovechando su disposición, conocimientos y el equipo de que disponen en sus apiarios.


Declaró que de marzo hasta mediados de junio existe una gran afluencia de abejas, debido a la excesiva floración registrada tanto en las plantas de ornato como en los cultivos establecidos en las zonas agrícolas del Estado, por lo que se ha intensificado la atención directa a través de las llamadas telefónicas recibidas para auxiliar a personas con problemas de enjambres silvestres.


Aguilera Alcántara, informó que adicionalmente se han dado a la tarea de analizar “especimenes sospechosos” capturados para determinar si son abejas africanas o africanizadas. “También estamos aconsejando a los apicultores de la región, que realicen cambios frecuentes de las abejas reinas de sus apiarios utilizando “abejas europeas certificadas” para minimizar el grado de africanización”, dijo.


El Jefe del Programa para el Control de la Abeja Africana, señaló que también se están ofreciendo cursos de capacitación a productores y estudiantes de las escuelas agropecuarias de Baja California, para que conozcan el problema a fondo y las posibles soluciones.


Por último brindó algunas recomendaciones generales que debe observar la población ante la cercanía de un enjambre de abejas:


1.Prestar atención al zumbido que indica un nido o enjambre de abejas.


2.No molestar a las abejas. todas poseen aguijón y veneno y pueden utilizarlo como protección cuando se sienten amenazadas.


3.Cuando se esta trabajando cerca de enjambres, no utilizar ropa con colores oscuros ni perfumes, ya que estos factores irritan a las abejas y despiertan en ellas respuestas defensivas.


4. No tratar de eliminar a las abejas mediante plaguicidas caseros, ya que estos irritaran a las abejas y las tornaran más agresivas.


5.Examinar el área de trabajo antes de usar podadoras de césped, serrucho eléctrico u otro equipo motorizado.


6.Enseñar a los niños a ser precavidos y no molestar ningún tipo de abeja.


7.Mantenerse alerta cuando se practican deportes y actividades al aire libre.


8.Tener cuidado cuando se entra a cobertizos o construcciones abandonadas donde pueda haber un panal de abejas.


9.Informarse con el médico acerca paquetes de primeros auxilios para picadura de abeja, especialmente si se es hipersensible al veneno de abejas.


10.Cuando ocurra un ataque de abejas, no intente únicamente ahuyentarlas con las manos, busque de inmediato un lugar cubierto o con agua para protegerse y si es aguijoneado por ellas, pida auxilio de inmediato, previniendo a las personas que llegarán a auxiliarlo.


11.Cuando se descubra la presencia de un panal o enjambre de abejas, no intentar eliminarlo por si mismo, llame de inmediato al Programa Estatal para el Control de la Abeja Africana de la Delegación de la SAGARPA en el Estado, a los Grupos de Protección Civil, especialmente al Cuerpo de Bomberos o bien a algún apicultor.


12.-Debemos recordar que ya tenemos abeja africanizada en el Estado de Baja California.

Iflyfish - 4-20-2008 at 06:35 PM

My Spanish Inadequate though I found reference to the National African Bee Control Program in Mexico, email addresses, they may have info on local resources.

This Google search came up with lots, but again my Spanish is too limited.

Iflyfish

Paulina - 4-20-2008 at 08:05 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Iflyfish

Smoke calms them down so you can move them. Mexicans have traditionaly used Marijuana for this purpose and it makes the task more pleasant.

Iflyfishwhennoteatingmyfavoritetupalohoneythoughthemexicancactushoneycanbeamazing


Shari,

Maybe you can hire that kid with the fake German helmet to help you tag team it.

P<*)))><

Iflyfish - 4-20-2008 at 08:12 PM

Paulina, that is rich, very rich!

Ifyfish

shari - 4-21-2008 at 07:48 AM

"Our" bees seem to be of the local mexicano variety...very mellow...just like to stay home...don't like soul music or rap....the article states that this year there is an abundance of bees because of all the flowers..uh huh...that the problem months are april-june....there are no bee keepers here...men just go to get the honey out of those cute elephant tree trunks. We relocated the big hive and are now raising bees too...Juan is very brave and doesn't mind getting stung a couple times which only happens when the bees are caught in his shirt or he mistakenly puts his hand on one....they are not aggressive. The article states if you have a bee problem, contact Proteccion Civil...Juan is a member and they just bring a bucket of soap and water at night and kill em...we don't really want to dismantle the whole house in order to scrape off the wax, honey smell etc...did that to the first hive but now it looks as if they have moved over to other parts of the house walls...dang...there MUST be some smell that repels them??????? Yes smoke gets em docile...but the problem is getting to the well hidden hives...Ifly...stoned bees are happy bees and might just attract more of their buddies...free weed man...lets PARTY! I did think the VODKA remedy for Kevin is a great idea though.

fishbuck - 4-21-2008 at 03:49 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by shari
"Our" bees seem to be of the local mexicano variety...very mellow...just like to stay home...don't like soul music or rap....the article states that this year there is an abundance of bees because of all the flowers..uh huh...that the problem months are april-june....there are no bee keepers here...men just go to get the honey out of those cute elephant tree trunks. We relocated the big hive and are now raising bees too...Juan is very brave and doesn't mind getting stung a couple times which only happens when the bees are caught in his shirt or he mistakenly puts his hand on one....they are not aggressive. The article states if you have a bee problem, contact Proteccion Civil...Juan is a member and they just bring a bucket of soap and water at night and kill em...we don't really want to dismantle the whole house in order to scrape off the wax, honey smell etc...did that to the first hive but now it looks as if they have moved over to other parts of the house walls...dang...there MUST be some smell that repels them??????? Yes smoke gets em docile...but the problem is getting to the well hidden hives...Ifly...stoned bees are happy bees and might just attract more of their buddies...free weed man...lets PARTY! I did think the VODKA remedy for Kevin is a great idea though.


I saw it on Mythbusters. Bees like Vodka too. They get a little agro at 1st but then just lay down and sleep it off.

Timo1 - 4-21-2008 at 04:21 PM

Don't you dare let Kevin waste any vodka on them bees...I know those bees...They don't seem to bee the nectar honey types....They hate vodka but love a good steak....so its easy...get a porterhouse and drag it slowly away with bees clinging to it.....while they're gone...seal up their entry and have a tecate and enjoy watchin them try to figure out what happened:lol:

Iflyfish - 4-22-2008 at 12:08 AM

If these are not honey bees, but the kind that eat meat, the go to this site and explore capturing options. We use them here to great affect.
http://www.google.com/searchq=wasp+traps&rls=com.microso...

Some of them you put a piece of meet in and then they fly in to eat the meat and are trapped, the other type we use has a container with a cotton soaked with pheronome that attracts them. Works like a charm, just need to regularly dump and clean them.

Iflyfish

Iflyfish - 4-22-2008 at 12:13 AM

Here are sites with images of various kinds of wasps and bees. It would help to identify which you are dealing with.

Wasp Images

http://images.google.com/imageshl=en&q=wasps&btnG=Se...

Bee Images

http://images.google.com/imagesgbv=2&hl=en&q=bees&am...

Iflyfish