Pupae are 1/4 inch (5 mm) long and creamy white to light brown in color, but darken with age. Further, wax moth larvae produce webbing in combs and can be found scattered throughout the hive SHB produces no webbing and often congregate in corners. Wax moth larvae have additional four pairs of less developed abdominal legs, lack body spines, and can grow to double the size of SHB larvae (Fig. The SHB larva looks similar to the wax moth larva ( Galleria melonella), but on close examination can be distinguished by their body spines and by only having three pairs of legs near the head. They have distinctive rows of body spines, and two large spines protruding from the rear. Mature larvae are 3/8 inch (9.5-11 mm) long and 1/16 inch (1.6 mm) wide, pearly white to beige in color, and have three pairs of legs near the head (Figs. SHB eggs are 1/16 inch (1.4 mm) long, creamy white in color, and only 2/3 the size of honey bee eggs (Fig. However, the dusky sap beetle is a scavenger, attracted to decaying fruit and vegetables, and is currently not known to impact honey bee colonies. 3) and has been found in a few honey bee hives in Utah. Note that the dusky sap beetle (Carpophilus lugubris) is a similar-looking beetle (Fig. Their color ranges from reddish-brown to dark brown (almost black) and darkens with age. DescriptionĪdults are small, 1/4 inch (5-7 mm) long and 1/8 inch (2.5-3.5 mm) wide, flattened beetles that are oblong in shape, with clubbed antennae and shortened elytra (hard wing coverings) (Fig.
Specimens should be placed into a vial containing rubbing alcohol (white vinegar or hand sanitizer are suitable alternatives) and secured using packing material to avoid damage. Suspect SHB can be sent to the Utah Plant Pest Diagnostic Lab at Utah State University or the Utah Apiary Program at Utah Department of Agriculture and Food. It was first found in Utah in 2016, and is now confirmed in Washington and Davis counties. SHB is now found throughout much of the U.S., including Hawaii, with highest infestations occurring in the Southeast. SHB has been detected in many countries, including Canada and Mexico, and was first detected in the U.S. SHB is native to sub-Saharan Africa where native African honey bee (Apis mellifera scutellata) behaviors, such as elevated aggression levels, can limit SHB infestations. SHB is largely spread through packaged bees, beekeeping equipment, and bee products, but adults are strong fliers and can easily disperse to new hives. Queens stop laying eggs, and the heat generated by large numbers of SHB larvae can cause comb collapse and colony abandonment. Under heavy infestations, bee colonies can quickly collapse. Infested hives can appear slimy, drip fermented honey, and have a rotten orange odor that is repellent to bees and attractive to SHB. Their frass (feces) causes honey to discolor, ferment, and froth. SHB will feed on pollen and honey, and kill bee brood and workers. 1) is an exotic pest of social bee colonies, including honey bees ( Apis mellifera) and bumble bees ( Bombus spp.). Small hive beetle (SHB) (Order Coleoptera, Family Nitidulidae) (Fig. Small hive beetles (SHB) in a honey bee hive. Larvae are fed from the stores during this season and, by spring, the hive is swarming with a new generation of bees.Fig. Hive Behaviorīees live on stored honey and pollen all winter, and cluster into a ball to conserve warmth. Several hundred drones live in each hive during the spring and summer, but they are expelled for the winter months when the hive goes into a lean survival mode. Male bees are called drones-the third class of honeybee. Queens also regulate the hive's activities by producing chemicals that guide the behavior of the other bees. If the queen dies, workers will create a new queen by feeding one of the female larvae an exclusive diet of a food called “royal jelly.” This elixir enables the worker to develop into a fertile queen. There is usually only a single queen in a hive. The queen's job is simple-laying the eggs that will spawn the hive's next generation of bees. Workers forage for food (pollen and nectar from flowers), build and protect the hive, clean, circulate air by beating their wings, and perform many other societal functions. These bees are females that are not sexually developed. Workers are the only bees that most people ever see. A hive's inhabitants are generally divided into three types. Such commercial uses have spawned a large beekeeping industry, though many species still occur in the wild.Īll honeybees are social and cooperative insects.
Honeybee hives have long provided humans with honey and beeswax.
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