64 



The principal causes of robbing are as follows : — (1) Weakness 

 of stocks, rendering them unable to pro- 



141. Causes of perly guard their stores ; (2) careless and 

 Bobbing. unnecessary exposure of honey-comb or 



feeding syrup, and supplying food to stocks 

 when bees are flying. (3) Ill-fitting hives, which permit the 

 access of strange bees to the honey store by openings other 

 than the door, and which, owing to the odour of honey from 

 the hive, tempt strange bees to rob. (4) Unduly exposing 

 hives for purposes of manipulation when honey is scarce. 

 (5) Placing the hives too close together, that is, within less 

 than . six feet of one another. (6) Queenless stocks (145) , 

 which rarely vigorously defend their stores. (7) When mani- 

 pulating stocks in an apiary containing several hives standing 

 near one another, failing to observe the very necessary precau- 

 tion to avoid so far as possible opening a stock which stands 

 close to, say within fifteen feet of the one last treated. 



When robbing is going on bees will frequently be noticed fight- 

 ing on the alighting-board ; it will be ob- 



142. Signs of served that frequent struggles take place. 

 Robbing. the bees of the attacked hive gripping the 



robbers, and if strong enough to do so, 

 killing them. 



For the prevention of robbing, avoid the causes of robbing 

 mentioned in paragraph 141. Keep 

 143. Preventive stocks strong ; unite weak stocks ; if rob- 

 Measures. bing has commenced, narrow the en- 



trance to f inch wide, just enough 

 to admit one bee ; cut a piece of glass about 12 inches 

 long and 2 inches wide, and let it rest on the aUgh ting- 

 board, leaning against the hive front, so that the bees going out 

 of or returning to the hive must pass round it, while the robber 

 bees will be puzzled by this arrangement and render it easier 

 for the attacked bees to defend themselves. The glass should, 

 of course, be put in position when bees are not flying. If 

 several hives in an apiary are robbed at the same time, it is 

 very likely that all the robbing is done by one stock ; this can 

 be ascertained by flouring (132) the fighting bees, and ascer- 

 taining which hive the robbers return to ; if it is found that the 

 robbing is due to one stock, its hive should be removed to a site 

 more than two miles away (182). Another good method is to pat 

 a wisp of hay damped with carbolic solution (180) on the alight- 

 ing-board ; it should be damped occasionally with the solution 

 while in use, and removed after a few days if the robbing has 

 then ceased. Another method which might be adopted when 

 the above-mentioned preventive measures prove ineffectual, is 

 to provide a tunnel about 3 inches long, J inch wide, and f inch 

 high, fitting close against and covering the entrance ; the tunnel 

 may be made of wood , or tin , and should be so fixed on the alight- 

 ing-board, that though secure it may easily be removed ; the 

 robbers will try to enter at the ordinary place close to the hive 



