Observation hive

Beekeeping Made Easy

The observation hive

The mystery of what happens within a dark hive can be solved with an observation hive. Watching worker bees go about their business is fascinating.

Observation hives serve several different purposes:

An observation hive can give you insight to the various things that are happening within a hive of bees.
An observation hive can be used for demonstration if you give talks at school or fairs.
An observation hive can help you study the habits of bees.
An observation hive can be built larger to represent a normal hive of bees and studied year round.

Keeping an active observation hive with only a few comb is not difficult during the spring. The bees will build up and most likely swarm due to the crowded conditions they will face. You will be able to observe this process and gain knowledge as you watch the bees build queen cells and watch the new queen put her own stamp on this observation hive. If you would like to keep an observation hive on an annual basis, you will need to build an observation hive that holds at least 10 frames. Even then it may not be big enough for the bees to survive through the winter season without feeding. Observation hive are notorious for dwindling out during winter months even if the beekeeper feeds them regularly.

We will show you some pictures that were taken of bee activity in an observation hive. The only way these pictures could have been taken was by close observation of bees through a clear glass separating the bees from the camera.

A number of plans exist for building an observation hive. We will share several with you. Observation hives can be purchased -- we will share photographs of several of these and tell you where they can be purchased.

First, some pictures taken of bees and bee activities in an observation hive.

How can you take pictures of the various stages of a bees life while the young egg, larva, or pupa is still in its cell?

The answer: An observation hive designed to allow the bees to build comb right up to the window.

A camera with a macro lens can get very close to the inside of a cell. Notice that this egg is photographed from the side rather than top down as would be required if you were trying to do the same thing with a frame of eggs. Of course, you could damage comb by cutting it and do almost the same thing. The advantage of the observation hive is you do not need to open the hive to observe the mystery inside.

Or have you ever wondered how the honey bee deposits pollen into the cells? With an observation hive you can watch the pollen being deposited and packed into the cell.

Or lets say you want to take close-up photographs of honey bees. The observation hive allows you to do so much. Watch them making wax comb. Watch them feed the larva. This is only the beginning of what you can do!

Or lets say you just want to watch young bees emerge from their cells, and watch them as they perform their duties. Some of the experiments that can be conducted with an observation hive can be pretty amazing. In fact, without observation techniques, some of the greatest discoveries of bee behavior would not have been possible. Down to some experiments

Note: The photographs above would not have been possible in the typical observation hive. Let me share with you why!

The typical observation hive will usually have one, two, three, or four frames set into a wood frame parallel with the glass panels that keep the bees in the hive. This allows only looking into a cell from the top in. It is fine for general observation but if you are interested in photographs such as those shown above, you will need to design the observation hive a bit differently.

Observation hive with frames:

The plans we are using were published in the Beekeeping Information sheets published by Ohio State University Entomology Extension, 1735 Neil Avenue, Columbus, Ohio.

Observation Bee Hive Number 10

Click on either of these drawing to see enlarged photographs.

We thought that this was interesting. It is an observation hive on a swivel which allows the observation hive to be moved sidewise. It also shows a possible way to connect an outside entrance to an observation hive located inside a room.

If you would like to purchase an observation hive, we have found two listed in the 2003 catalogs we have received:

They do not include bees. Once the observation hives have been order and set up, you will need to install bees in them. It will take only one pound of bees to get one of these observation hives started. If you buy a two pound package, you will have way too many bees.

Dadant Catalog contact: www.dadant.com

This observation hive is a basic one and 1/2 tall hive. It is made from finished wood and is a bit more expensive than the one listed below. According to the information in this listing, it will hold 1 deep frame and 1 shallow frame which will need to be order along with foundation for the frames. It does not say anything about glass. You will need to ask some questions to make sure that when the observation hive arrives, you will have everything you need to get it started.

Kelley Catalog contact: www.kelleybees.com

When you buy this observation hive, you will need to buy the glass or plastic locally. It does include 1 frame, 1 sheet wired foundation, feeder cap and a 1 foot plastic tube to run through a wall. An additional observation hive super can be purchased to set on the base observation hive making an observation hive two frames high. You could add a third or fourth super if you desired. As you add supers to such a narrow base you need to provide additional support to prevent it from falling over.

An observation hive without frames:

First let me say that these are illegal because the comb can not be examined for American foulbrood in many states. We are going to suggest that you either build a single frame observation hive or buy one, and then place this special observation hive box on top of the other hive. In that way, the comb in the observation hive in a frame can be removed and inspected. The comb in the box on top will not be open to observation except from the exposed cells next to the glass.

How to build the frameless observation box.

First, we are not going to include any dimensions. The reason for this is it is going to sit on your observation hive which you either bought or made. The sizes will vary and our guess is that our suggestion of dimensions will only serve to confuse you.

Materials:

What you need will be five sheets of glass. Glass can be purchased in several strengths and weights. Standard window glass is available at most hardware stores and we would recommend that. Plastic is much harder to keep absolutely clean later when clean up time arrives. These sheets of glass will serve as:

sides --- You will need two Glass will be cut according to the measurements you will make from the plywood base which is described below.
top --- You will need one
ends --- You will need two
You will also need one sheet of plywood cut to fit the exact top of the observation hive.
Some scraps of wax or foundation.
You will need four screws and two rubber bands.
A bonding material such as epoxy glue which will hold glass.

Step # 1

Cut the plywood to fit the top of your observation hive's outside dimensions. The red lines should represent the cut size of the plywood.

Step #2

Determine the thickness of the glass and cut 1/4 deep slots for the glass as shown in the diagram below. The slots are represented by the black lines. These slots are cut 1/2 of an inch from the edges.

Step # 4

Getting the glass cut: Measurements are critical.

Measure first the side glass parts. They should be no more than 5 inches high and should measure from the points a to b for one side and c to d for the second side. The end glass pieces need to fit up snug to the side glass sides. They are also the same height as the side glass and are represented by the distance from a to c and b to d. The top piece of glass must overlap the glass sides. This needs to be cut to fit a the rectangle formed by the letters a - b - c -d. This top piece of glass will need to be finished so no sharp edges can cut. Many glass shops will grind this edge for you.

Putting it together:

Apply bonding material to the slots and then the four sides are slipped into the slot cut for them. These pieces of glass should fit tightly into the slot as well as at the corners. Apply bonding material between the glass sides and place a good strong piece of tape completely around the sides to hold it in place until the bonding material sets.

While the bonding material is setting up for the sides and plywood, you can begin to fasten the comb to the bottom side of the top cover. A small amount of heat is applied to the glass (an electric iron set on medium heat and covered with a towel will work). When the glass is warm to the touch, take several short steps of wax foundation to the middle part of the glass and gently press them into the glass at a 90° angle from the long side. The wax should slightly melt as it touches the glass and adhere to it. Remove the top from the heat. Hopefully you have several pieces of wax (you could add more if you like) now stuck to the underside of the top piece of glass. If the wax foundation falls off, repeat the process when the glass get a little hotter.

We are almost done:

The final step is to apply bonding material to the top edge of the upright glass sides and carefully square up the top glass cover with the wax foundation facing down. Gently lower it until it makes contact with the glass sides. Now screw four small screws into the plywood at points opposite a, b, c, and d. You will then stretch a rubber band from point a to point c and point b to point d. This will hold the top in place until the bonding material sets. The absolute final step is to fasten this plywood base to the top of your observation hive. You are now ready to watch your bees work this new foundation and add to it.

You should now have your own special observation hive in which the bees will build natural comb. You may photograph the bees working in this upper chamber on your observation hive much as shown in the photos above.

Exercises you can conduct with your observation hive:

Mark some newly emerged worker bees and observe them over a period of 20 days. Keep record of the activity in the hive they perform day by day.
Replace a queen (yellow or black) with a queen of the opposite color. Watch to see what begins to happen 21 days later when the new queens young begin to emerge from their cells.
Study the communication system of the honey bee. We suggest you read, The Dancing Bees by Karl Von Frisch. It should be found in larger public libraries.
Observe when the bees are bring in pollen and nectar. Again, keep records of what you see. Date, what color pollen, and how much comb building is going on.
Or just sit back and enjoy being close to your bees.

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