Considering that the invention of the wooden beehive 150+ in the past, there’ve been few innovations in beehive design. But that’s all changing now-at warp speed. Where other industries had the luxurious to evolve slowly, beekeeping must deploy the most up-to-date technologies if it’s to work in the face of growing habitat loss, pollution, pesticide use as well as the spread of global pathogens.

Go into the “Smart Hive”

-a system of scientific bee care meant to precisely monitor and manage conditions in hives. Where traditional beekeepers might visit each hive over a weekly or monthly basis, smart hives monitor colonies 24/7, so can alert beekeepers for the dependence on intervention the moment a difficulty situation occurs.

“Until the arrival of smart hives, beekeeping was actually a mechanical process.” Says our founder and Chief Science Officer, Dr. Noah Wilson-Rich. “With technology we’re bringing bees into the Internet of products. When you can adjust your home’s heat, turn lights on and off, see who’s at the doorway, all coming from a smart phone, have you thought to perform same goes with beehives?”

Even though many begin to see the economic potential of smart hives-more precise pollinator management might have significant effect on the bottom line of farmers, orchardists and commercial beekeepers-Wilson-Rich and his team at the best Bees is most encouraged by their effect on bee health. “In the U.S. we lose almost half of our own bee colonies every year.“ Says Wilson-Rich. “Smart hives enable more precise monitoring and treatment, knowning that could mean a tremendous improvement in colony survival rates. That’s a victory for everyone on earth.”

The first smart hives to be released utilize solar powered energy, micro-sensors and smartphone apps to watch conditions in hives and send reports to beekeepers’ phones about the conditions in every hive. Most smart hive systems include monitors that measure hive weight, temperature, humidity, CO2 levels, acoustics and in some cases, bee count.

Weight. Monitoring hive weight gives beekeepers a sign of the start and stop of nectar flow, alerting these phones the necessity to feed (when weight is low) also to harvest honey (when weight is high). Comparing weight across hives gives beekeepers a sense the relative productivity of each one colony. A dramatic stop by weight can suggest that the colony has swarmed, or even the hive has been knocked over by animals.

Temperature. Monitoring hive temperature can alert beekeepers to dangerous conditions: excessive heat indicating the hive should be gone to live in a shady spot or ventilated; unusually low heat indicating the hive must be insulated or protected from cold winds.

Humidity. While honey production makes a humid environment in hives, excessive humidity, especially in the winter, can be a danger to colonies. Monitoring humidity levels let beekeepers know that moisture build-up is going on, indicating the need for better ventilation and water removal.

CO2 levels. While bees can tolerate higher amounts of CO2 than humans, excessive levels can kill them. Monitoring CO2 levels can alert beekeepers for the must ventilate hives.

Acoustics. Acoustic monitoring within hives can alert beekeepers to some number of dangerous situations: specific modifications in sound patterns can often mean the loss of a queen, swarming tendency, disease, or hive raiding.

Bee count. Counting the volume of bees entering and leaving a hive can provide beekeepers a signal with the size and health of colonies. For commercial beekeepers this can indicate nectar flow, and the have to relocate hives to more lucrative areas.

Mite monitoring. Australian scientists are using a brand new gateway to hives that where bees entering hives are photographed and analyzed to determine if bees have grabbed mites while beyond your hive, alerting beekeepers with the have to treat those hives to avoid mite infestation.

A few of the higher (and expensive) smart hives are designed to automate high of standard beekeeping work. These can include environmental control, swarm prevention, mite treatment and honey harvesting.

Environmental control. When data indicate a hive is just too warm, humid or has CO2 build-up, automated hives can self-ventilate, optimizing internal environmental conditions.

Swarm prevention. When weight and acoustic monitoring claim that a colony is preparing to swarm, automated hives can alter hive conditions, preventing a swarm from occurring.

Mite treatment. When sensors indicate a good mites, automated hives can release anti-mite treatments including formic acid. Some bee scientists are trying out CO2, allowing levels to climb sufficient in hives to kill mites, but not enough to endanger bees. Others will work on the prototype of a hive “cocoon” that raises internal temperatures to 108 degrees, a level of heat that kills most varroa mites.

Feeding. When weight monitors indicate ‘abnormal’ amounts of honey, automated hives can release stores of sugar water.

Honey harvesting. When weight levels indicate a great deal of honey, self-harvesting hives can split cells, allowing honey to empty out of specifically created frames into containers underneath the hives, able to tap by beekeepers.

While smart hives are simply start to be adopted by beekeepers, forward thinkers in the industry already are going through the next-gen of technology.

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