Since the invention with the wooden beehive 150+ in years past, there’ve been few innovations in beehive design. But that’s all changing now-at warp speed. Where other industries had the posh to evolve slowly, beekeeping must deploy the newest technologies if it’s to function in the face of growing habitat loss, pollution, pesticide use and also the spread of world pathogens.

Type in the “Smart Hive”

-a system of scientific bee care built to precisely monitor and manage conditions in hives. Where traditional beekeepers might visit each hive with a weekly or monthly basis, smart hives monitor colonies 24/7, so can alert beekeepers for the need for intervention as soon as a problem situation occurs.

“Until the arrival of smart hives, beekeeping was an analog process.” Says our founder and Chief Science Officer, Dr. Noah Wilson-Rich. “With technology we’re bringing bees in the Internet of Things. If you can adjust your home’s heat, turn lights don and doff, see who’s at the front door, all from a cell phone, why don’t you perform same goes with beehives?”

While many begin to see the economic potential of smart hives-more precise pollinator management will surely have significant influence on the final outcome of farmers, orchardists and commercial beekeepers-Wilson-Rich and his team at Best Bees is most encouraged by their influence on bee health. “In the U.S. we lose up to 50 % of our bee colonies each and every year.“ Says Wilson-Rich. “Smart hives accommodate more precise monitoring and treatment, and that could mean a significant improvement in colony survival rates. That’s success for anyone in the world.”

The very first smart hives to be removed utilize solar powered energy, micro-sensors and mobile phone apps to observe conditions in hives and send reports to beekeepers’ phones about the conditions in each hive. Most smart hive systems include monitors that measure hive weight, temperature, humidity, CO2 levels, acoustics and in many cases, bee count.

Weight. Monitoring hive weight gives beekeepers an illustration in the stop and start of nectar flow, alerting these to the requirement to feed (when weight is low) and to harvest honey (when weight is high). Comparing weight across hives gives beekeepers a sense of the relative productivity of each colony. An impressive drop in weight can suggest that the colony has swarmed, or the hive has become knocked over by animals.

Temperature. Monitoring hive temperature can alert beekeepers to dangerous conditions: excessive heat indicating the hive ought to be transferred to a shady spot or ventilated; unusually low heat indicating the hive must be insulated or shielded from cold winds.

Humidity. While honey production produces a humid environment in hives, excessive humidity, especially in the winter, could be a danger to colonies. Monitoring humidity levels can let beekeepers know that moisture build-up is happening, indicating any excuses 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 to the should ventilate hives.

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

Bee count. Counting the number of bees entering and leaving a hive will give beekeepers an illustration from the size and health of colonies. For commercial beekeepers this could indicate nectar flow, and the have to relocate hives to more lucrative areas.

Mite monitoring. Australian scientists are tinkering with a new gateway to hives that where bees entering hives are photographed and analyzed to find out if bees have picked up mites while beyond your hive, alerting beekeepers of the should treat those hives to prevent mite infestation.

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

Environmental control. When data indicate a hive is 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 change hive conditions, preventing a swarm from occurring.

Mite treatment. When sensors indicate the existence of mites, automated hives can release anti-mite treatments such as formic acid. Some bee scientists are trying out CO2, allowing levels to climb adequate in hives to kill mites, although not sufficient to endanger bees. Others work with a prototype of the hive “cocoon” that raises internal temperatures to 108 degrees, a degree of heat that kills most varroa mites.

Feeding. When weight monitors indicate low levels 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 specially designed frames into containers beneath the hives, able to tap by beekeepers.

While smart hives are simply starting to be adopted by beekeepers, forward thinkers in the market happen to be studying the next-gen of technology.

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