Texas Beekeeping. 



131 



that may continue to do damage in the apiaries. With a little care 

 the number of moths can be kept down materially and the danger 

 from this source decreased. Keeping all the colonies strong and in 

 good hives will enable any beekeeper to protect his bees against the 

 ravages of the wax moth 

 larvae, and there is no ex- 

 cuse for the constant, and 

 often heavy losses, attrib- 

 uted to their depredations. 

 The progressive beekeeper 

 does not fear them as an 

 enemy. 



There is another and 

 smaller wax moth, known 

 as the ' ' Lesser wax moth, ' ' 

 that does a good deal of 

 harm to the cappings of 

 stored combs. Fancy comb 

 honey is often spoiled by 

 the larvae of these little 

 moths tunneling through 

 the delicate cappings of 

 the combs. Their pres- 

 ence may be noticed by 

 the fine dust-like trails 

 over the comb surface. 

 Fumigation should be re- 

 sorted to immediately 

 upon such discovery. The 

 moths are slightly more 

 than half the size of the common wax moth. They are silvery gray 

 in appearance and swift in movement and flight. They need not be 

 feared any more than the larger moth. 



OTHER ENEMIES. 



Mice. Sometimes great damage is done to the combs stored away 

 over winter by mice getting to them ; but, with a little care in keep- 

 ing the combs out of their reach, or in closed hives or boxes, they need 

 not be feared. Occasionally they will find their way into hives of 

 bees where they like to nest, because of the warmth coming from the 

 cluster of bees. In doing so they are very destructive to the combs. 

 Entrances to the hives, therefore, should not be more than % inch 

 in depth. Since bees object to occupying hives and supers which 

 smell of mice, they should be kept away from them by constant trap- 

 ping. 



Since mice are very fond of old combs and honey, they can easily 

 be caught by placing several of the small flat spring traps upon such 

 pieces of comb honey, in a shallow pan about three inches high. 

 Outside of the pan a piece of brick, or the like, is placed immediately 

 opposite each of the traps, so that the mice, in climbing into the pan 



