Can I Catch Honey Bees in a Foam Cooler?

When it comes to catching bees, there's no need to overthink it. You can make bait hives (swarm traps) from all sorts of cheap or free stuff. With a little bit of patience, you can begin populating your bee yard with wild swarms that are adapted to your area. Check out this swarm I caught using just a couple of recycled styrofoam coolers, a bit of wax, and some propolis.
#beekeeping #swarms #swarmcatch #honeybee #beerescue #beerelocation
This is my third swarm catch of the season. The other 2 were with traps made from 5-gallon buckets.
00:00 Introduction
00:49 Flashback to Creating the Trap
04:31 Bee Swarm on Cooler Trap
06:35 Moving Bees into a Nuc Box
11:45 Final Thoughts on Moving Bees

[@mmb_MeAndMyBees]

I would add a decent bit of Lure within that Cooler. Say a bit of Lemon Grass Oil on a piece of Cotton (ex Pillowcase torn up) and staple that to one of those Cross Rails. Even better : Get an old shot to bits Bee Frame (all Dark Wax with Propolis all over it.) And use that as your 'anchor'site. They will Comb that up no problem. (Easy to Rubber Band all that Comb: into lovely new Hive Frames.) And yes Brood really secures a Swarm. Like having a 'Home Sweet Home' sign above the Fire Surround. 🤭
Also that Cooler Box in this Video needs that external undercomb removed or at least masked with say your Smoker (rub a bit of Soot to that area.) Will stop another Swarm from hanging 'under' again. You want them to go right in !
Hope this helps folks. 😎
Saying Hi from Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿
I guess the true land of 'Mac' Bees. As well as Robbie Burns too. . . Its 'Burns Night on the 25th : Haggis & Whiskey anyone !?! Think he did Poetry over wrangling bees.
Mind you Bees in action are a kind of Poetry in motion. 🤭
Can't wait for Swarm Season to come around, that's not until late May or so for us here. Meantime we are being bashed about with '70mph' Winds courtesy of Storm Isha this Sunday : 21st Jan 2024 !
All Hives have more than Bricks on them. Straps, Rocks, even Compost Bags, to hold everything 'down' and in place ! Don't want my poly Nucs blown off into the distant Hills or adjacent Heather Moors ! 😉
However I did see x3 Bees fly off out, into the Air, 'quickly' this morning. .Yes ! They are Alive ! Just needing to do some Bathroom Breaks. . . 🤭
As before today, we have had severe Ice, Snow and Artic Blast of Sub Temps, almost for several weeks now. Boy it was Cold🥶. What's the Weather up to at the moment ? Its gone crazy for sure ! 😖
In watching a lovely Summers Evening, then that Sunset over those Fields, in your Video Footage, looked almost like 'virtual' Beekeeping ! That will need to keep me happy until the Bee Season starts up again ! Can't wait. 🌼🐝🌼
Have had to much indoor time in my old Cottage, Cabin Fever has kind of set in for sure. . .
Please let Spring 🌷arrive sometime soon. Until then I'm watching your back Catalogue of Videos with Sunshine in them. . .😎

[@dawntharme-mb5fi]

I’m using these boxes this year🤞they like the boxes.

[@macbeebuzzin]

Awesome! If you have success, I’d love to hear about it.

[@mattkissmyasstyrants8676]

New sub, just found your vid because it was recommended afer watching my recently uploaded. Great channel man.. i really like what i see so far. ✌🏻

[@macbeebuzzin]

Thanks! I appreciate the feedback.

[@dorothywood4470]

Why do you suppose they did not enter the cooler? I ask because my husband and I caught a swarm with a foam cooler similar to yours. I went out at 8 am one morning, no bees. At 11 am there was a swarm slightly smaller than the one you caught. We decided to wait until they actually entered the box, but after 48 hours, that still had not happened. So we used a pallet on a forklift to raise an empty top-bar hive to just underneath the cooler--similar to what you did with your box--and re-homed them that way. Do you suppose that they like the smell of the wax and propolis but not the smell of the foam? Thank you for posting your video! I actually searched "foam cooler bee hive" hoping someone else had tried this and posted their results. I'm grateful to learn that our experience was not unique.

[@macbeebuzzin]

I don’t think it’s the foam specifically, because I have bucket traps where I have observed similar behavior. I think it is realistically 1 of 2 issues - either ventilation-related (although, unlikely since I’ve had bees moved into those same traps), or more likely how I bait the lure. Early on, I would put the lemongrass or swarm commander high up in the trap, which drew them up and in. These days, since I have quite a few traps out, I often just spritz in the hole or push a Q-tip in the opening. Increasingly, I theorize that they gather near the scent (unless it is overpowering).

[@apveening]

@@macbeebuzzin Just make sure the Q-tip is further in, preferably near the back wall.

[@slippersmomma]

There is a brand of Styrofoam hive systems, but I was wondering the same thing you asked.

[@lindajohnson2950]

Hi! What size rubber bands do you use to cross the back of the frames?

[@markwaring622]

You need a turkey feather

[@macbeebuzzin]

Indeed! It appears to work well.

[@markhoezee6292]

What keeps unwanted guests such as bald face hornets to start a home in your boxes?

[@macbeebuzzin]

From my experience, they don’t like to build on the material. Since they build with paper, not wax, they don’t like to build in them. I’ve never had an issue with hornets in my traps or hives.