Lesson 66: Other Pests and Predators

Ants, mice, skunks, bears and other visitors, and how to keep them out

Beyond mites, beetles and moths, a beehive attracts all kinds of animals: some just looking for shelter, some after the honey, and some after the bees themselves. Which ones you'll meet depends on where you live; your Seasonal Guide notes which matter in your area. Here's how to recognize each and what to do.

Harmless hive guests

Spiders, earwigs and cockroaches often shelter under the lid or between the covers. They don't harm the bees or equipment and don't need control.

The bee louse (actually a tiny wingless fly, reddish-brown, smaller than a pinhead) sometimes rides on bees, especially the queen. It does little harm.

Ants

• Usually not a serious pest, more of a nuisance for the beekeeper. Ants often nest between the inner and outer covers, and may raid honey, pollen, or sugar syrup. Some kinds nest around apiaries and can bite or sting the beekeeper.
• Prevention:
• Keep hives on stands, off the ground.
• Keep grass and weeds trimmed around hives.
• Don't spill syrup or leave honey and burr comb lying around.
• Some beekeepers stand hive legs in "ant moats" (containers of water or oil).
• Don't spray insecticides on or near hives. They can kill bees (lesson 68).

Mice

• A serious pest of stored comb, and they move into hives in fall and winter, when bees cluster and leave the outer frames unguarded.
• Mice chew combs and frames to build nests, and their urine and droppings foul combs. Bees may refuse to clean out the mess, or even abandon the hive.
• Prevention: before nights turn cold in fall, reduce the entrance or fit a mouse guard: a metal strip with small holes, or hardware cloth (⅜-inch keeps out even small mice; ½-inch mostly works). Protect stored equipment too: store boxes closed at top and bottom.

Skunks (and other small mammals)

• Skunks raid hives at night. They scratch at the entrance, and when guard bees rush out, the skunk eats them. Night after night, this weakens colonies and makes them more defensive. Attacks are most common in spring but can happen through summer and fall. Skunks target weaker hives and come back once they find a food source.
• Signs: scratched, muddy entrances, trampled or dug ground in front of the hive, and unusually defensive bees.
• Prevention:
• Put hives on stands so a skunk has to stand up and expose its belly to reach the entrance, where bees sting it.
• Barriers across the entrance (some beekeepers use wire mesh or tack strips on the landing area).
• Keep colonies strong.
• Opossums and raccoons can cause similar trouble in some areas.

Bears

• In bear country, bears are the most destructive hive predator: they can wreck an entire apiary, sometimes in one night. They smash hives to eat brood (their main target, for protein) as well as honey, and may carry frames or whole boxes off.
• A bear usually damages one to three colonies a night, and keeps coming back until the apiary is gone.
• Prevention:
• Site hives away from bear trails, established roads and watercourses where bears travel.
• An electric fence is the standard defense, and wildlife biologists credit it with a big drop in bear-damaged apiaries. Use two or more "hot" wires, one about 8 inches off the ground and one about 40 inches high (a third in between helps). A woven-wire inner fence and a wire mat about 2 feet wide around the base, both connected to the controller's ground, make it stronger. Build the fence before the hives go in, and keep it maintained.
• Raised platforms also work but are costly and make the bees harder to manage.
• Nothing is 100%. Once a bear has found your hives, even a fence often isn't enough; moving the hives may be the best answer.
• Know your local rules: bears are protected wildlife; check with your state wildlife agency before taking any action, and report nuisance bears to them.

How it looks: Bear damage: hives torn apart and boxes scattered.

Other predators

• Wasps, yellowjackets and hornets catch bees and raid weak colonies for honey and brood, especially in late summer and fall (lesson 69 shows how to tell them apart). Reduce entrances on weak colonies so they can defend themselves (lesson 50).
• Birds, toads, dragonflies and spiders catch some bees, but rarely enough to matter.

What to remember

• Harmless: spiders, earwigs, cockroaches, bee lice.
• Ants: nuisance; stands, trimmed grass, no spilled syrup, no insecticides near hives.
• Mice: entrance reducer or mouse guard before cold nights; protect stored comb.
• Skunks: scratch at entrances at night and eat the guards; hive stands and entrance barriers.
• Bears: can destroy a whole yard; electric fence, or move the hives.

Quick check

1. Why are mice mainly a problem in fall and winter?
2. How does putting hives on stands help against skunks?
3. What's the standard defense against bears?

Adapted from: UF/IFAS Extension, Bears and Bear Fences (AA133); Penn State Extension, A Quick Reference Guide to Honey Bee Parasites, Pests, Predators, and Diseases; UGA Bee Program, Honey Bee Disorders: Non-infectious Diseases and Pests; UF/IFAS Extension, Welcome to the Apiary! (4H446, 2024); University of Arkansas, Complete Beekeeping Short Course, Part 14 (Zawislak); Purdue Extension, Advanced Beekeeping (4-H-1059); Penn State Extension, An Organic Management System for Honey Bees.

Photo: Bear damage, rickpilot_2000, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr.

Adapted from university Extension sources. Experienced Georgia beekeepers are reviewing these lessons. See something that doesn't match your experience? Tell us.