----- Original Message ----- From: "Lionel Evans" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Sunday, March 16, 2008 1:11 PM Subject: Re: [BEE-L] feral bees I did not realize that I was not sending this to BEE-L until I checked to see whewre it went. We remove bees from brick and vinyl sided houses without any damage to the structure. We, a couple of my fellow beeks and myself, do this for a fee. Normally it ends up being a losing proposition. We see ourselves doing this as a community service to help promote knowledge of honey bees, to help people remove what they feel is a problem, and keep them from killing the bees. We do several per year in North Alabama. We span about 25 mile radius area. Did not do very many in 2006 but did several in 2007. Sometimes we have to rent scaffolding to get to the elevation of the point of egress. This make it more expensive. We use a screen wire funnel to get the bees out of the structure and have a hive just under the screen with brood and some bees inside. We make sure the frame of brood and bees we start with has eggs to capped brood. Therefore they will raise a queen for themselves. The bees come out and cannot find a way back into the old site. Then they smell the brood in the hive below and feel needed and go in to work there. We have an inner cover that is made with an opening at the rear and the telescoping top is raised a little to give access. Only problem with this procedure is that bees can find the smallest access point, therefore we have to return each day until we have all openings sealed. This operation takes about 6-8 weeks. Sometimes we will have to make 10 trips to get the holes stopped. We use silicone caulking which the bees will sometimes chew out to make an opening. When we have completed the task, we will remove the screen to let the new bees rob the honey from the old location. This does not damage the siding and no holes have to be cut and repaired. P. S. We like honeybees!!!! Lionel North ALa. > > > > > > > **************************************************** * General Information About BEE-L is available at: * * http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/default.htm * ****************************************************