Please note the new subject and subject line and feel free to change the 
subject line when you change the subject.
---

>> Has anybody calculated how long in advance of swarming bees take an
>> interest in a bait hive and add it to their list of possible new homes?

> Lindauer has observed that house hunting bees are former foragers.
> So perhaps 1 to 2 weeks prior to swarming, foragers would 
> be aware of many available voids.  

I concur, and my experience has been that bait hives placed only 
a week or less ahead of swarming sledom catch swarms.  If they 
do, IMO they probably do so more because they find a convenient 
resting place for the newly issued swarm than by design.

My rule of thumb is to set bait hives out at least three weeks before 
expected swarming.  Stacks of surplus equipment stored in yards 
often attract bees if they have an entrance that bees can use and 
that may well be due to the fact that they smell right, have comb, 
and have been there a long while.  If the bees have recently robbed 
those combs, that seems to further improve the odds.

If bait boxes attract interest, it can be so intense that enough bees 
arrive to inspect the box(es) to make one wonder if a small swarm
has already arrived and taken possession.

Next question: does having attractive bait hives nearby cause bees 
to swarm more than they would if not so tempted, or do they simply 
make it more obvious to use that a swarm has issued?

BTW, sometimes a swarm will land on and move into a hive which is 
already occupied by an apparently normal colony.  What's with that???

             ***********************************************
The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software.  For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html

Guidelines for posting to BEE-L can be found at:
http://honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/guidelines.htm