22 



supers. Be careful not to inhale any of the fumes. It is advisable to do 

 tne fumigation outside or in a well ventilated room. Do not tear the 

 supers down for twelve hours. Do not use cyanogas in a dwelling house- 

 it is extremely poisonous. 



Paradichlorobenzene (P.D.B.) Is one of the most satisfactory in- 

 secticides that can be recommended for wax moth control. It is a white 

 crystalline material, with a not unpleasant odour. It is non-injurious to 

 humans at ordinary concentration. It is non-inflammable and very easy 

 to handle. 



The gas given off is heavier than air, so a handful of crystals is added 

 on a piece of paper at the top of a stack of five supers. More crystals 

 can be added occasionally throughout the storage period. It is most 

 effective at around 70 degrees F. 



Storing Combs. Where much trouble is experienced from mice and 

 wax moth, it is advisable to store the supers of comb in stacks of five with 

 a metal lid or queen excluder at the top and bottom of each pile. One of 

 the various disinfectants should be used and cracks sealed up as far as 

 possible. The most suitable disinfectant recommended for general use is 

 Paradichlorobenzene (P.D.B.) . When disinfecting supers, best results 

 are obtained if the stacks are not made more than five supers high. Where 

 the danger of wax moth is not particularly great beekeepers stack the 

 supers up with a sheet of newspaper between each super. Printers' ink 

 apparently acts as a repellant to the wax moth. 



Comb Honey. Wax moth larvae can very soon spoil a season's crop 

 of comb honey. Moths will lay their eggs in the cracks between the 

 supers; on hatching the young worms crawl to the comb honey and 

 destroy the wax capping. If trouble with wax moth is expected it is 

 advisable to remove the honey from the colonies as soon as possible. 

 Place 8 to 10 shallow frame supers of honey one on top of the other and 

 use similar fumigation methods as used for stored combs. P.D.B. is 

 particularly recommended for use with comb honey. Some beekeepers 

 use sulphur for this purpose, as the fumes tend to bleach wax, thus 

 making the cappings whiter. 



(b) Other Moths 



The larvae of several moths destroy comb. The Mediterranean 

 Flour Moth and Indian Meal Moth larvae sometimes damage comb when 

 burrowmg for pollen. The larvae spin silken threads similar to those of 

 the Common Wax Worm, but do not cause as much damage to the comb. 



The Lesser Wax Worm does damage similar to the Common Wax 

 Worm, except that the webs are finer and more generally on the surface 



=r^ uf "^ ^^'^ '^ "°* ^''. important pest in Canada, but causes con- 

 siderable damage m warm climates. 



These moths can be controlled by fumigation in the same mannpr a<! 

 recommended for the Common Wax Worm. manner as 



(c) Skunks 

 Skunks are troublesome in most sections of Ontario Thev will 

 scratch m front of a hive to annoy the bees. When the bS rush out t^iv 

 become entangled in the skunk's fur and are rapidly eaten Skunks also 



