There are lots of bear stories from up here.
 
I've heard from one person who watched (I don't remember why) a bear tear apart
a hive and consume several frames of comb, being attacked by the bees, rubbing
its snout  and crying, whining or wimpering through the whole process. The
person interpretted this as a sign that the bear was hurt by the stings, but
maybe the sounds were expressions of "joy" at the great meal.
 
A beekeeper tried a new method of bear protection: he placed 2 rows of 5 hives,
touching side to side , and back to back, then wrapped the whole block with
chain link fencing and some 2x4s. As an extra, he put some heavy nails 4-6 inch?
sticking outward, through the 2x4s. He left this armored block of hives in a
remote mountain location for about 2 weeks. It was a bad year for bears. When he
came back the block was OK, but the bottom edge of some hive fronts had been
broken away by bears clawing at the entrances, and the nails had tufts of bear
hair and blood on them, and there were bloody footprints  on the rest of the
cage and the ground in front.
 
The conclusion seems to be that bears have a great tolerance for being stung or
slightly injured, when the reward (or hunger) is great enough.
 
My experience with bears has been that they will carry (roll?) boxes or combs
away from the hive stand, perhaps to reduce the bee attack and eat in relative
peace.
 One year of repeated bear visits to a yard indicated that the bears chose
brood patches in summer,  (as neatly removed as a person could do) ignoring the
honey, but switched to honey in the fall.
 
This has got me thinking... I'd better go change a battery at one of my
experimental yards.
 
Skunks? I saw some "skunk excluders" that were reported to work well. They were
wooden frames like the edges of a cube (one edge omitted), designed to fit
against the bottom front of the hive and protect the entrance. The 2 sides,
front and top were covered with mesh fencing, about 2 inch square holes, and an
"apron" extended out from the bottom about 1 foot. The skunks couldn't dislodge
or dig under the frame, and couldn't get close enough to the entrance to cause
any damage. The bees flew through the mesh.
 
bye, good luck
 
Kerry Clark, Apiculture Specialist
B.C. Ministry of Agriculture
1201 103 Ave
Dawson Creek B.C.
        V1G 4J2  CANADA          Tel (604) 784-2225     fax (604) 784-2299
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