Because the invention of the wooden beehive 150+ years ago, there’ve been few innovations in beehive design. But that’s all changing now-at warp speed. Where other industries had the luxury to evolve slowly, beekeeping must deploy the newest technologies if it’s to perform industry by storm growing habitat loss, pollution, pesticide use along with the spread of global pathogens.
Enter in 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 need for intervention after a problem situation occurs.
“Until the arrival of smart hives, beekeeping really was a mechanical process.” Says our founder and Chief Science Officer, Dr. Noah Wilson-Rich. “With technology we’re bringing bees in to the Internet of products. If you can adjust your home’s heat, turn lights off and on, see who’s at the door, all from your mobile phone, have you thought to carry out the do i think the beehives?”
Even though many begin to see the economic potential of smart hives-more precise pollinator management can have significant influence on tha harsh truth of farmers, orchardists and commercial beekeepers-Wilson-Rich and the team at Best Bees is most encouraged by their influence on bee health. “In the U.S. we lose almost half in our bee colonies annually.“ Says Wilson-Rich. “Smart hives accommodate more precise monitoring and treatment, and that could mean a substantial improvement in colony survival rates. That’s a win for all on the planet.”
The first smart hives to be sold utilize solar technology, micro-sensors and cell phone apps to watch conditions in hives and send reports to beekeepers’ phones on the conditions in each hive. Most smart hive systems include monitors that measure hive weight, temperature, humidity, CO2 levels, acoustics and even, bee count.
Weight. Monitoring hive weight gives beekeepers an indication in the stop and start of nectar flow, alerting them to the necessity to feed (when weight is low) also to harvest honey (when weight is high). Comparing weight across hives gives beekeepers a feeling of the relative productivity of each one colony. A remarkable stop by weight can advise that the colony has swarmed, or 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 needs to be insulated or shielded from cold winds.
Humidity. While honey production creates a humid environment in hives, excessive humidity, especially in the winter, is usually a danger to colonies. Monitoring humidity levels can 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 greater numbers 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 amount of dangerous situations: specific alterations in sound patterns can indicate loosing a queen, swarming tendency, disease, or hive raiding.
Bee count. Counting the number of bees entering and leaving a hive can give beekeepers a signal with the size and health of colonies. For commercial beekeepers this may indicate nectar flow, along with the need to relocate hives to more productive areas.
Mite monitoring. Australian scientists are using a brand new gateway to hives that where bees entering hives are photographed and analyzed to discover if bees have found mites while away from hive, alerting beekeepers with the must treat those hives to prevent mite infestation.
A number of the more complex (and expensive) smart hives are designed to automate most of standard beekeeping work. These range from 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 suggest that a colony is getting ready to swarm, automated hives can transform hive conditions, preventing a swarm from occurring.
Mite treatment. When sensors indicate a good mites, automated hives can release anti-mite treatments like formic acid. Some bee scientists are trying out CO2, allowing levels to climb enough in hives to kill mites, and not enough to endanger bees. Others are working with a prototype of your hive “cocoon” that raises internal temperatures to 108 degrees, that 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 an abundance of honey, self-harvesting hives can split cells, allowing honey to drain beyond engineered frames into containers beneath the hives, able to tap by beekeepers.
While smart hives are simply start to be adopted by beekeepers, forward thinkers in the market happen to be going through the next generation of technology.
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