In the last week or two there was a post on SHB,  turned out to be a great post.  It mentioned shells and exoskeletons from larve.  Up until this year SHB have been a small time pest,  any weak or dying hives were quickly taken over.   I had assumed and observed it seems the SHB were preying on weak hives.   

Last night I moved hives into pumpkins.  Pumpkins here are interesting because the dirt around the hives is clean,  no grass or weeds to hide debris.   Two of the skids were from a yard I had lost  a hive or two earlier this year.  As mentioned Beetles moved into the hives quickly (I cleaned them up)  I assumed I had lost the hives to chilled brood.   

The hives on the pallets were all strong hives,  2 deeps and supers chocked full of bees 100k or so in each.   

On the ground in front of 2 of them are piles of larvae exoskeletons.  and opening the huves there is easily a cupful of SHB in each.
apparently at some level the SHB switch from scavengers to predators.  these guys are voraciously eating larve.  That is a bit of a new development in thinking for me.  Up until now a cpl here and there were just normal and annoying.   Time to change the thinking.

Trying some MAQS on one to see if it will drive out the beetles.  


Charles

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