Hi Bob

A couple of comments on the vulnerability of a weak bee colony. Most
creatures will succumb to specific parasites when weakened by some
other factor, e.g., a worm-infested dog that will later become
flea-infested.

Scutellata colonies that are weak, with lots of empty but built comb,
will be attacked by wax moths in warmer months. The same can be
said about SHBs. But the only time I have really seen SHBs totally
infest a scut hive is when capensis infestation is intermediate to
advanced.

By these stages, social and other order in the hive has totally broken
down; the bees have even lost their natural defensive characteristics.
Capensis often strikes when a colony is very large (too large for the
scut queen to control), so there is often loads of brood, pollen and
honey. This provides a tragic sea of plenty for the moths and SHBs,
and their populations explode.

I should also add that in areas where I store comb, I ensure not only
access for birds, but ants as well. The honeyguides have to be kept
away from direct access to comb (they will even eat foundation). The
ants have access to the combs, to clean out any pollen or honey
(which attract other pests), or any pest that may be breeding. Some
people call these ants Argentine ants, but to me they are just very
small black sugar ants. The male worker has a much larger head
than the female, and they can establish gigantic colonies.

Barry