Category: bee removal

Do You Have Bees or a Yellow Jacket Hive In Your Walls or Attic?

Is That Buzzing You Hear in Your Walls a Sign That Bees Or Yellow Jackets Have Invaded?

Bee Catchers Southern California

Have bees taken up residence in the walls or attic of your house or business location? The incessant humming you hear might be a signal to take action. Depending on whether it requires getting rid of bees, yellow jacket eradication, or another pest or problem not yet determined. Before you do anything definitive, it would be smart to decide precisely what. If anything, is in fact sharing your space.</p>

First, of course, you have to be mindful of the target. Do you hear buzzing almost continually in a particular location or do you suspect an invasion. Because you see a bee flying aimlessly throughout the room?. If it’s just one bee flying into windows, it probably just lost its way and got into your abode by accident.</p&gt;</p>

&lt;p>However, if you see a single or several bees moving back and forth from a specific spot. The chances are you have a hive that needs to be addressed. The first course of action is to just watch it quietly and locate the gap through which it enters and exits. Since these spaces can be minuscule, a flashlight is a big help in finding the exact spot. Conversely, it is possible that you never see any critters flying about your space, but you do hear that tell tale humming that seems to be coming from the walls. Once the precise location is determined, do not start poking around; there’s a reason the phrase “don’t disturb a hornet’s nest” is a cliche. Getting rid of bees is always best left to professionals.

When pinpointing which insect you’re harboring, you can start by checking the season. Generally speaking, if it is fall or winter, you probably have honey bees since yellow jackets seldom spend the colder months inside walls in most regions of the country. An in depth look at the visitor is also in order. Honey bees are about 2/3 inch long, are covered with hairs and have a form of basket on their back legs in which they collect yellow or dark green balls of pollen. They vary in color from yellow to black and have black or brown stripes across the abdomen.

Yellow jackets, however, don’t have the same thick hairs or the pollen baskets. They are somewhat smaller than honey bees and sport alternating stripes of yellow and black. If they build a nest in your residence, it will be invisible and the only clue you will have is to see them flying into cracks or crevices from the outside of the house. The ground bee is a variety of yellow jacket that creates nests in holes in the ground. They are often painfully hostile if disturbed by oblivious pedestrians or lawn mowers.

&lt;p>No one wants to share living quarters with stinging insects, so whether you’ve been invaded by bees or yellow jackets, there are experts one can call. Removal requires far more than “killing” the offending creatures. Eco-friendly bee removers will take care to remove the complete hive. Repair any damage the invaders may have caused, and in the case of honey bees, find a bee keeper to take in the hive. Thus doing their part to sustain this essential species. Calling an eco-responsible bee catcher is the recommended solution to rid your home of annoying, potentially painful, possibly lethal insects.

In the last article we wrote about Honeybees and how extremely crucial they are too
human and plant survival. Included in the article was a brief description of what an active
Honeybee hive consists of. For those who have not read the last article. Refer to……

Why Honeybees are so important and should not face extermination.
Offered is a recap, and short commentary explaining how an active, thriving Honeybee: hive
with 30.000 to 80,000 bees, survives and the responsibilities of the different bees within the hive.
1) There is only one Queen Bee in a hive. Responsibility; to lay up to 2000 eggs per day.
2) Worker bees are the most abundant in the hive. All are non-reproductive females. Duties, act
as nurses, builders, protectors, and nectar and pollen gatherers for the hive.
3) Drones are all males, less in numbers then workers. Only duty is to mate with the Queen Bee.
Note: Only Queen Bee and worker bees have stingers. Worker bees die after one sting. Queen
Bee can sting over an over without dying.

In the previous piece, we tried to make the public aware of how important it was to save
honeybees. Unfortunately, an unknown cause is decimating the honeybee population. Civilian
and Military Scientist are working feverishly to find the source, but unfortunately they have not
been successful. The good news is that they might be on to something. Lets all hope for the best.

Since the Honeybee was introduced to the United States from Europe, there are many
natural enemies of the honeybee, just to mention a few, parasites, mites, birds, frogs, wasps,
hornets, and bears, which love honey and destroy thousands of wild bee hives in wooded areas.
God knows that the honeybee does not need more enemies, especially man made or imported.

However, one enemy of the Honeybee does not reside in the United States. It resides in
Eastern Asia. Specifically in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Indochina. China. India.

It is the Asian giant hornet, or a subspecies known as THE JAPENESE GIANT HORNET!!!,
that has captured our interest.  It is the largest and the most fearsome hornet in the world. It is approximately 2 inches in  length, with a stinger approximately ¼ inch long. Its head and eyes are large and orange in color
with a banded brown and yellow abdomen. It uses its large mandibles, rather then its stinger to
crush its prey.  The reason why there is interest in this hornet is that the Japanese have a native
honeybee, but that specie does not produce the volume of honey that European honeybees
do. Therefore, the Japanese have imported European honeybees. Unfortunately the European
honeybee has very little or no defense against the Japanese giant hornet.
The native specie of honeybees unlike the European kind, have over time developed an
effective defense to combat these giant hornets. When a solo giant hornet lands on its nest, the
native honeybee forms a large ball and engulfs the hornet, causing its temperature to rise and in
turn kill it, thus not allowing it to leave a scent for others giant hornets to follow.
The European honeybee has no such defense. When a single giant hornet ( or scout) finds
a European honeybee hive, it secretes a pheromone that attracts other hornets. Once the giant
hornets discover a nest, a large number of them attack the beehive.

In a matter of hours, 30 giant  hornets can kill a honeybee hive of 30,000. Once a nest (or hive) is decimated, the giant hornets  remove the honeybee larvae and dead bees and return to their hive to feed them to their young.
As we first stated in this article, the Japanese Giant Hornets resides in Eastern Asia’s
warm and humid tropical areas but just as so many non-native species of plants, insects, and
animals have found their way into the United States and unfortunately survived. We certainly do
not need another enemy of the European honeybee. Let us keep hoping that this monster insect
remains in Eastern Asia.

Bee Catchers will continue to save bees. If you have questions about bees and before
you think of exterminating a beehive, remember how important they are to your survival, please
Call Bee Catchers at 866-544-0074 or visit our web site at www.BeeCatchersSoCal.com

Bee Happy!

Honeybees are one if not the most important insects alive. They are responsible for pollinating 80% of our fruits, vegetables, nuts, plants, grains, and most of the vegetation that grows in our forests and fields. Honeybees are most important when it comes to pollinating trees.

Without Honeybees two-thirds of our citrus, nuts and some fruits would disappear in the coming years. Some scientist’s believe that the reduction of the Honeybee population is as serious a problem as global warming.

Someone said, (but not verified) that the late Albert Einstein once remarked that, “If all the Honeybees disappear through-out the world, mankind would exist for approximately four years.” It is so important that we do all we can to save the Honeybees, because a great number of Honeybees and their hives are dying at a rapid pace.

The Honeybee population has shrunk from approximately 5.9 million to approximately 2.4 million in the last 50+ years. Since 2006, 20/40% of the hives have suffered “colony collapse.” The problem is so dire in California that local beekeepers are looking to import Honeybees from other states and foreign countries. The sad fact is that scientists have yet to discover the cause for the Honeybees rapid decline.

A SHORT HISTORY ABOUT THE HONEYBEE

The Europeans introduced the Honeybee, to the United States, during the colonial period because of their ability to create large hives, pollinate crops, and produce large quantities of honey. The great Aristotle referred to honey, as nectar from the Gods. An active hive consists of a Queen, and anywhere from 40,000 to 80,000 worker bees and drones. There is only one Queen in the hive at any given time. Her responsibility is to lay approximately 2,000 eggs per-day. The largest number of bees in a hive is worker bees. They are all females and lack reproductive capabilities. At the early stage of their lives, they act as nurses, builders, and protectors of the hive. After they mature, their duty is to scout and retrieve nectar and pollen. The Queen and the worker bees are the only ones who have stingers. Worker bees only die when they sting humans because they have a barb on the end of their stinger that will not allow it to retract it from the thickness of human skin. Queens can sting repeatedly because their stinger does not have a barb and is therefore smooth. Drones are males and their only function is to mate with the Queen. There are far fewer drones then worker bees in a hive.

Think carefully before you consider exterminating the Honeybees on your property.

BEE CATCHERS is a state licensed, family owned company, with more than fifteen years of experience, committed to saving, and relocating Honeybees, so that we can all continue to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

At Bee Catchers we give all of our bees away to people and organizations that can use them.  They are saved, rescued and relocated! They are given to backward beekeepers, hobbyists, farmers, orchards and apiaries!

If you have found that you have an active beehive on or near your home or business, your first instinct may be to simply grab a can of bug killer and start spraying away, or perhaps to call an exterminator. There are, however several reasons why that is the last thing on earth that you should do. The most obvious reason for this is that you probably don’t have the right equipment or know-how to safely, properly and permanently dispose of or remove a beehive without getting yourself stung and doing more harm than good. Here are some other reasons that, when you need some help getting rid of bees, you should call in the experts to have them removed.

1. Bees should not be killed. Simply put, there is no overstating the importance of these creatures to the sustenance of life on earth. Yes, you read that right. Bees do the vast majority of the work of pollinating the crops that grow the plants that feed all of us, and that feed the animals we raise as well. Due to many factors, including pesticides, the number of bees and active beehives is already decreasing at an uncomfortable rate. So, if at all possible, these valuable creatures should be safely removed from your property by hiring a qualified bee removal service. The best of these services practice eco-friendly bee removal, and have deals with professional beekeepers to move the entire colony to a farm where these creatures can continue to do their valuable work.

2. Hives Need To Be Removed Completely. Beehives are, naturally, full of honey, and if they are not removed completely from your premises along with the bees, they will attract other pests such as ants, wasps, flies, and vermin. There is also a much greater chance that bees that are not captured, or a neighboring colony, will attempt to re-colonize the hive if it is not properly and professionally removed.

3. Hives Can Leave Structural Damage. And the best bee removal experts will repair this damage as part of their services.

4. Removal is Pesticide-Free. So it doesn’t leave any toxic or poisonous residue behind. Bees are removed in perfect health, and are relocated to a place where they can happily go about their business without disturbing yours. And, of course, no poisonous fumes seep into your home or business potentially compromising the health of all residents and workers.

So if you are having trouble with a beehive, do the right thing and call in the experts to have them removed safely and in an eco-friendly manner.

Bee Happy it’s Friday!!!!

Mention the word ‘wasp,’ and an anxious audience is likely to look around uncomfortably, ready to swat at anything that moves. Most notably associated with the well known yellow jackets, wasps actually come in various different sizes, shapes, and colorings. Because of the bad reputation that follows these insects, many removal sprays promise a quick kill of newly established colonies. Unfortunately, pushing the trigger of the spray can too quickly lead to the eradication of one of the most beneficial insects around. Humane wasp removal services remind consumers that there is a distinctive place in the landscape for wasps and the ecosystems they support.

An examination of wasps and the ecosystems in which they thrive paints a very different picture from the aggressive insect that attacks humans (which, of course, is responsible for the creation and sale of so many removal chemicals). Advocates for humane relocation repeat the information that urban residents may not have heard lately: the average wasp is actually a parasite that helps control unwanted insects such as spiders, flies and garden pests. Rather than calling for removal, eco-friendly farmers capitalize on their usefulness and oftentimes import these maligned insects as bio-control agents for naturally occurring pests that have the power to threaten an entire harvest. It is also important to identify the “dangerous” insect correctly. Not all wasps are aggressive, and most, if left alone pose no imminent danger to yourselves or your children.

Many people worry about these creatures in their neighborhoods and near their families. It is important to remember that finding a single wasp does not mean there is a colony near your home. If large numbers are found in or around a home, and especially if they seem to be aggressive, a professional should be called to investigate and remove them. However, locating the colony is a critical component to removal.
Out of respect for the insect and the ecosystems in which they exist, humane removal is of paramount importance. Sure, the use of a pesticide would be quick and simple, but it would also rob the environment of its natural pest control agents. In fact, the use of pesticides can also have a host of unintended consequences, especially when beneficial insects – such as aphid consuming ladybugs – may inadvertently fall victim to the killer mist as well.

With the benefits of these wasps and the ecosystem firmly in mind, removal professionals initially locate the nest and size up the colony. Small nests are very simple to remove and do not require an extensive relocation. Those that are well established may contain as many as 15,000 insects, and any removal must be done by an expert who can handle the live insects without causing a swarm. It is interesting to note that this kind of activity frequently has to take place after dark, when the offenders are less likely to react quickly.

Beware of companies that promise humane removal but still proceed to kill the animals after capture. Even though these outfits do not use deadly gas or harmful chemicals to get rid of wasps, they nevertheless rob the ecosystem of its beneficial predatory parasites. Moreover, the loss of even one colony of insects can be quite significant in that it also robs other desirable animals – such as birds – of their food sources. Relocation keeps the insects in the food chain by merely altering the location of the nests.

Bee Happy

By Krissa Smith, Assistant Web Editor, Urban Farm magazine

Because bees are responsible for more than one-third of our food supply. Citizens are becoming more concerned with preserving bees and their bee hives. Enter Bee Catchers, a southern California bee-removal service that takes bee hives from backyards and relocates them instead of exterminating them.</p&gt;</p&amp;gt;

Bee Catchers, a bee-removal company licensed through the Structural Pest Control Board, is family owned and operated by Steven and Nicole Downs. A couple passionate about saving bees for the better of the human race.</p&gt;&l

t;/p>

Bee Catchers charges a flat rate for their bee-removal service (around $150 when no honeycomb is present). And offers warranties, as well as performs structural repair to roofs, stucco and drywall, as many jobs require when honeycomb has been built in the st

ructure. Nicole Downs says bees start to produce honeycomb about one week after finding their new home.

“Honeycomb should never be left in a structure, because if it is, bees will return, as they will smell the pheromone left behind,” Nico

le says. “The bees will no longer be able to cool the honeycomb; therefore, it will end up leaking and melting down into the structure, becoming a food source to a myriad of things.”</p>&lt;/p>

So how does Bee Catchers remove bees without harming them?

“If bees are in a backyard, let’s say, for instance, hanging from a tree branch. We smoke them with a natural smoke made from pine and eucalyptus to relax them. Then they are taken live by hand, ensuring the proper capture of the queen. And moved into a well-screened, ventilated box,” Stephen Downs explains. “They are then transported to other beekeepers, apiaries, orchards, farmers, backyard beekeepers, et cetera within the next day or so. We give our bees away at no profit to people who need them.”

If you’re looking for a bee-removal service, do your homework. As many companies say they perform live bee removal, but may not. The Structural Pest Control Board’s website at will perform a license lookup for California residents in just a few minutes