Linda's Bees: Wax moth damage in the small swarm hive

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I began this blog to chronicle my beekeeping experiences. I have read lots of beekeeping books, but nothing takes the place of either hands-on experience with an experienced beekeeper or good pictures of the process. I want people to have a clearer picture of what to expect in their beekeeping so I post pictures and write about my beekeeping saga here. Along the way, I've passed a number of certification levels and am now a Master Beekeeper! Enjoy with me as I learn and grow as a beekeeper.

Need help with an Atlanta area swarm? Visit Found a Swarm? Call a Beekeeper.

Saturday, August 11, 2007

Wax moth damage in the small swarm hive

Today I checked the small swarm hive and found to my dismay that the #8 frame as well as the #7 frame was full of wax moth damage. When I first opened the hive, a fat juicy wax moth crawled right out onto the hive box - YUCK. I smashed several wax moths with my hive tool and then tried to remove the damaged comb. In the end I took it out of the hive altogether and replaced the frames with frames of young brood from Mellona. I leaned the frames against the deck to see if bees wanted anything that was still there - pollen and such - but later I'll put them in one of my strong hives to get cleaned up.

The poor small swarm continues to struggle. I think today I'm going to call about ordering a new queen for them since they didn't make a queen cell from the frames I gave them on Sunday last week.