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June 22, 2000 - Got bees? Here's a 'secret' solutionJune 22, 2000 • The Suffolk Times • 7A Got bees? Here's a `secret' solution Last week a call came from a con- cerned reader who had found a col- lection of bees in his neighbor's hedge. What happens when bees be- come overcrowded in their hives is that they leave en masse to search out a new home. Until they find a new home you Focus are apt to see ON these clusters of bees almost any- NATURE where. Our by Pain caller's concern Stoutenburgh was mainly for his neighbor, an elderly lady who is legally blind. She enjoys her back yard and he was con- cerned she unknowingly might brush up against them and get stung. There's always that possibility, but when bees swarm they are rarely ag- gressive. The question was, "Could I suggest a solution ?" Surely they did- n't want to spray and kill the bees, for they are too important as pollina- tors to do anything as drastic as that. I told them the solution was quite simple. I'd come and get them. It was one of those cool overcast days that meant the bees would probably stay put. I told them I'd be right there to check them out and see if now would be the right time to get them or if it might be better to wait until later that evening. When Barbara and I arrived we met our caller, a person we found later had concern for all things "great and small." He took us to the yard next door and, sure enough, there was a swarm of honeybees massed in a privet hedge. They were huddled around their "queen" amongst the many branches of the hedge. This would make it difficult to collect them; nevertheless, I thought I could manage the task. Because of the overcast day, I thought it best to wait until evening. Hours later found us back at the swarm. I was surprised to see they had moved a short distance away un- der a 2x6 rail fence, a much better position for collecting. My only prob- lem was I couldn't collect them with the equipment I had brought, so I asked the wife if she had a box and she promptly showed up with a Vic- toria's Secret box just the right size. With the lid off I merely covered the swarm and wiped them from under the 2x6, every bee falling into the box. I then put the cover on and handed it to Barbara. It was as easy as that. Never before had a Victoria's Secret box held such a secret. Everyone was pleased with the evening's capture — everyone but Barbara, who sat in the front of the pickup with a box of Victoria's Secret bees on her lap. She said she could feel the heat from the box as they moved around inside. I must admit I drove a bit more carefully, as we could hear the aroused bees buzzing inside and didn't want to disturb them any more than necessary. I had previously set up some supers (bee boxes with comb inside), so all I had to do was lift off the top and set them in. I then plugged up the exit so they wouldn't get any ideas of taking off. I even fed them with a little honey and left them in their new home for the night. Next morning I removed the plug from the entrance and they immediately started buzzing around checking out their new location. I'm happy to report, days later, they are doing well, going in and out as they repair their new home and doing what bees do best, collecting nectar and pollen. Foxes doing well I was pleased to hear from another caller out on Nassau Point who had a den of foxes living under his utility shed. Foxes seem to go in cycles of abun- dance. We're not sure if it's the "mange," as some people believe, or some other factor that limits their abundance. My per- sonal belief is that one reason could be man's use of rat and mouse poison. The rat or mouse eats the poison, goes outside in search of water and dies. Then along comes the fox who's always looking for an easy meal; it eats the dead mouse or rat and in turn ingests the poison and dies. How can we prevent this accidental poisoning? Use a good old- fashioned snap trap. Evidently there was no such prob- lem of accidental poisoning out on Nassau Point. It must have been fun to watch the kits growing up, for I know from seeing them years ago that they play like baby puppies, rolling and frolicking with occasional yapping of a brother or sister when one bites too hard. My caller even produced a nice set of pictures of his little troop of foxes. They were so ad- venturesome that he took pictures of the young exploring his patio right outside his picture window. Of course, the young foxes have to eat, so no sooner are they weaned from the mother's milk than they re- quire meat in some form or another. Our caller would merely say he is no longer plagued by squirrels, and the geese that once littered his lawn with droppings are no longer a problem. So there you have it. You people who are bothered by geese, get yourself a pair of foxes and let nature take its course. water delight and started visiting our hummingbird feeder on a regular ba- sis. This was a new one for me so I had to document it on film. These all -gray catbirds are a lovely addition to any back yard for they are really quite tame and are easy to get to know. Years ago a good friend of mine in East Marion had them lit- erally eating out of his hand. He found out that they enjoyed bits of hard cheese he had thrown out to them. Then, by grad- ually moving the bits of cheese closer and closer, he finally got them to take the tid- bits right out of his hand. What a thrill! I often have them come close to me as I work in the garden. With their apparent lack of fear I was able to get close to them with my cam- era (with telephoto lens) and sit about 15 feet away from the feeder. It was early in the morning and the dew was still on the grass. As I sat there I saw three cedar waxwings fly out of the big holly tree where they were feeding on last year's berries. I also had time to observe a large car- penter bee (similar to a bumblebee) in the siding of the nearby tool shed. What brought my attention to it was the sawdust that kept falling to the ground. This bee literally cuts out a cavity in wood (up to a foot in length) in which it glen places a se- ries of egg chambers, each with its own pocket of pollen and honey. The pocket will later supply the hatching young with food until they emerge from the well - protected cells. It was- n't long before I was rewarded by my catbird appearing at the feeder. Click! and another click! One more for good measure and my photo job was complete. It's assignments like this that "make my day." Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh Seeing we couldn't lure a hummingbird to our sugar -water feeder we were happy to settle for the friendly catbird. This all -gray catbird builds its nest in low shrubs and bushes. Its eggs are a beautiful blue like the robin's. joseph L. Townsend INSURANCE Serving the North Fork since 1950 HOMEOWNERS • MARINE • AUTO • LIFE 800 - 564 - 0933.216 MAIN STREET, GREENPORT • 477 -0153 On the opposite side of the coin, let's hope Mr. and Mrs. Fox stay on Nassau Point, for I can vouch from experience: foxes and my chickens don't mix. New visitor at feeder A few weeks ago we had the plea- sure of having a hummingbird visit us. Sorry to say, its visit lasted only a day. Because of its short stay, I thought it might be wise to get out the hummingbird feeders in hopes of luring one of those tiny jewels to stay. Days and a week went by without seeing a hummingbird. In the mean- time a catbird discovered our sugar- •-------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - -- CLIP `N SAVE 10% ' r r r r more LARGER Southampton Store! v. ' • New Merchandise • Extensive Foods • ' N Vitamins • Supplements • Herbs • Organic Produce • N `rn out as f °r Now Featuring: m Cdip O01O dis���nt • Dr. Hauschka o ra Skin Care o on r vita suQptements. • Borlind of Germany O O , r 283 -81 17 70 Main St., Southampton 41 Newtown La., East Hampton 324 -5257 i r ' OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK YEAR ROUND i WE SHIP ANYWHERE �4 SINCE 1851 ' ' www.secondnaturemarkets.com ; 'offer not to be combined with other specials. i •------------------------------------- ----- --- --- -- ------ -- ---- - - - --- June 22, 2000 • The Suffolk Times • 7A MGot Here's a `secret' solution Last week a call came from a con- cerned reader who had found a col- lection of bees in his neighbor's hedge. What happens when bees be- come overcrowded in their hives is that they leave en masse to search out a new home. Until they find a new home you Focus are apt to see ON these clusters of bees almost any - NATURE where. Our by Paul caller's concern Stoutenburgh was mainly for his neighbor, an elderly lady who is legally blind. She enjoys her back yard and he was con- cerned she unknowingly might brush up against them and get stung. There's always that possibility, but when bees swarm they are rarely ag- gressive. The question was, "Could I suggest a solution ?" Surely they did- n't want to spray and kill the bees, for they are too important as pollina- tors to do anything as drastic as that. I told them the solution was quite simple. I'd come and get them. It was one of those cool overcast days that meant the bees would probably stay put. I told them I'd be right there to check them out and see if now would be the right time to get them or if it might be better to wait until later that evening. When Barbara and I arrived we met our caller, a person we found later had concern for all things "great and small." He took us to the yard next door and, sure enough, there was a swarm of honeybees massed in a privet hedge. They were huddled around their "queen" amongst the many branches of the hedge. This would make it difficult to collect them; nevertheless, I thought I could manage the task. Because of the overcast day, I thought it best to wait until evening. Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh Seeing we couldn't lure a hummingbird to our sugar -water feeder we were happy to settle for the friendly catbird. This all -gray catbird builds its nest in low shrubs and bushes. Its eggs are a beautiful blue like the robin's. Our caller would merely say he is no longer plagued by squirrels, and the geese that once littered his lawn with droppings are no longer a problem. So there you have it. You people whc are bothered by geese, get yourself a pair of foxes and let nature take its course. Hours later tounct us back at the swarm. I was surprised to see they had moved a short distance away un- der a 2x6 rait fence, a much better position for collecting. My only prob- lem was I couldn't collect them with the equipment I had brought, so I asked the wife if she had a box and she promptly showed up with a Vic- toria's Secret box just the right size. With the lid off I merely covered the swarm and wiped them from under the 2x6, every bee falling into the box. I then put the cover on and handed it to Barbara. It was as easy as that. Never before had a Victoria's Secret box held such a secret. Everyone was pleased with the evening's capture — everyone but Barbara, who sat in the front of the pickup with a box of Victoria's Secret bees on her lap. She said she could feel the heat from the box as they moved around inside. I must admit I drove a bit more carefully, as we could hear the aroused bees buzzing inside and didn't want to disturb them any more than necessary. I had previously set up some supers (bee boxes with comb inside), so all I had to do was lift off the top and set them in. I then plugged up the exit so they wouldn't get any ideas of taking off. I even fed them with a little honey and left them in their new home for the night. Next morning I removed the plug from the entrance and they immediately started buzzing around checking out their new location. I'm happy to report, days later, they are doing well, going in and out as they repair their new home and doing what bees do best, collecting nectar and pollen. Foxes doing well I was pleased to hear from another caller out on Nassau Point who had a den of foxes living under his utility shed. Foxes seem to eo in cvcles of abun- e're not sure if it's the "mange," as some people believe, or some other factor that limits their abundance. My per- sonal belief is that one reason could be man's use of rat and mouse poison. The rat or mouse eats the poison, goes outside in search of water and dies. Then along comes the fox who's always- looking for an easy meal; it eats the dead mouse or rat and in turn ingests the poison and dies. How can we prevent this accidental poisoning? Use a good old- fashioned snap trap. Evidently there was no such prob- lem of accidental poisoning out on Nassau Point. It must have been fun to watch the kits growing up, for I know from seeing them years ago that they play like baby puppies, rolling and frolicking with occasional yapping of a brother or sister when one bites too hard. My caller even produced a nice set of pictures of his little troop of foxes. They were so ad- venturesome that he took pictures of the young exploring his patio right outside his picture window. Of course, the young foxes have to eat, so no sooner are they weaned from the mother's milk than they re- quire meat in some form or another. On the opposite side of the coin, let's hope Mr. and Mrs. Fox stay on Nassau Point, for I can vouch from experience: foxes and my chickens don't mix. New visitor at feeder A few weeks ago we had the plea- sure of having a hummingbird visit us. Sorry to say, its visit lasted only a C ay. Because of its short stay, I thought it might be wise to get out the hummingbird feeders in hopes of luring one of those tiny jewels to stay Days and a week went by without seeing a hummingbird. In the mean- time a catbird discovered our sugar- water delight and started visiting our hummingbird feeder on a regular ba- sis. This was a new one for me so I had to document it on film. These all -gray catbirds are a lovely addition to any back yard for they are really quite tame and are easy to get to know. Years ago a good friend of mine. in East Marion had them lit- erally eating out of his hand. He found out that they enjoyed bits of hard cheese he had thrown out to them. Then, by grad- ually moving the bits of cheese closer and closer, he finally got them to take the tid- bits right out of his hand. What a thrill! I often have them come close to me as I work in the garden. With their apparent lack of fear. I was able to get close to them with my cam- era (with telephoto lens) and sit about 15 feet away from the feeder. It was early in the morning and the dew was still on the grass. As I sat there I saw three cedar waxwings fly out of the big holly tree where they were feeding on last year's berries. I also had time to observe a large car- penter bee (similar tc a bumblebee) in the siding of the nearby tool shed. What brought my attention to it was the sawdust that kept falling to the ground. This bee literally cuts out a cavity in wood (up to a foot in length) in which it then places a se- ries of egg chambers, each with its own pocket of pollen and honey. The pocket will later supply the hatching young with food until they emerge from the well - protected cells. It was- n't long before I was rewarded by my catbird appearing at the feeder. Click! and another click! One more for good measure and my photo job was complete. It's assignments like this that "make my day." June 22, 2000 • The Suffolk Times • 7A MGot Here's a `secret' solution Last week a call came from a con- cerned reader who had found a col- lection of bees in his neighbor's hedge. What happens when bees be- come overcrowded in their hives is that they leave en masse to search out a new home. Until they find a new home you Focus are apt to see ON these clusters of bees almost any - NATURE where. Our by Paul caller's concern Stoutenburgh was mainly for his neighbor, an elderly lady who is legally blind. She enjoys her back yard and he was con- cerned she unknowingly might brush up against them and get stung. There's always that possibility, but when bees swarm they are rarely ag- gressive. The question was, "Could I suggest a solution ?" Surely they did- n't want to spray and kill the bees, for they are too important as pollina- tors to do anything as drastic as that. I told them the solution was quite simple. I'd come and get them. It was one of those cool overcast days that meant the bees would probably stay put. I told them I'd be right there to check them out and see if now would be the right time to get them or if it might be better to wait until later that evening. When Barbara and I arrived we met our caller, a person we found later had concern for all things "great and small." He took us to the yard next door and, sure enough, there was a swarm of honeybees massed in a privet hedge. They were huddled around their "queen" amongst the many branches of the hedge. This would make it difficult to collect them; nevertheless, I thought I could manage the task. Because of the overcast day, I thought it best to wait until evening. Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh Seeing we couldn't lure a hummingbird to our sugar -water feeder we were happy to settle for the friendly catbird. This all -gray catbird builds its nest in low shrubs and bushes. Its eggs are a beautiful blue like the robin's. Our caller would merely say he is no longer plagued by squirrels, and the geese that once littered his lawn with droppings are no longer a problem. So there you have it. You people whc are bothered by geese, get yourself a pair of foxes and let nature take its course. Hours later tounct us back at the swarm. I was surprised to see they had moved a short distance away un- der a 2x6 rait fence, a much better position for collecting. My only prob- lem was I couldn't collect them with the equipment I had brought, so I asked the wife if she had a box and she promptly showed up with a Vic- toria's Secret box just the right size. With the lid off I merely covered the swarm and wiped them from under the 2x6, every bee falling into the box. I then put the cover on and handed it to Barbara. It was as easy as that. Never before had a Victoria's Secret box held such a secret. Everyone was pleased with the evening's capture — everyone but Barbara, who sat in the front of the pickup with a box of Victoria's Secret bees on her lap. She said she could feel the heat from the box as they moved around inside. I must admit I drove a bit more carefully, as we could hear the aroused bees buzzing inside and didn't want to disturb them any more than necessary. I had previously set up some supers (bee boxes with comb inside), so all I had to do was lift off the top and set them in. I then plugged up the exit so they wouldn't get any ideas of taking off. I even fed them with a little honey and left them in their new home for the night. Next morning I removed the plug from the entrance and they immediately started buzzing around checking out their new location. I'm happy to report, days later, they are doing well, going in and out as they repair their new home and doing what bees do best, collecting nectar and pollen. Foxes doing well I was pleased to hear from another caller out on Nassau Point who had a den of foxes living under his utility shed. Foxes seem to eo in cvcles of abun- e're not sure if it's the "mange," as some people believe, or some other factor that limits their abundance. My per- sonal belief is that one reason could be man's use of rat and mouse poison. The rat or mouse eats the poison, goes outside in search of water and dies. Then along comes the fox who's always- looking for an easy meal; it eats the dead mouse or rat and in turn ingests the poison and dies. How can we prevent this accidental poisoning? Use a good old- fashioned snap trap. Evidently there was no such prob- lem of accidental poisoning out on Nassau Point. It must have been fun to watch the kits growing up, for I know from seeing them years ago that they play like baby puppies, rolling and frolicking with occasional yapping of a brother or sister when one bites too hard. My caller even produced a nice set of pictures of his little troop of foxes. They were so ad- venturesome that he took pictures of the young exploring his patio right outside his picture window. Of course, the young foxes have to eat, so no sooner are they weaned from the mother's milk than they re- quire meat in some form or another. On the opposite side of the coin, let's hope Mr. and Mrs. Fox stay on Nassau Point, for I can vouch from experience: foxes and my chickens don't mix. New visitor at feeder A few weeks ago we had the plea- sure of having a hummingbird visit us. Sorry to say, its visit lasted only a C ay. Because of its short stay, I thought it might be wise to get out the hummingbird feeders in hopes of luring one of those tiny jewels to stay Days and a week went by without seeing a hummingbird. In the mean- time a catbird discovered our sugar- water delight and started visiting our hummingbird feeder on a regular ba- sis. This was a new one for me so I had to document it on film. These all -gray catbirds are a lovely addition to any back yard for they are really quite tame and are easy to get to know. Years ago a good friend of mine. in East Marion had them lit- erally eating out of his hand. He found out that they enjoyed bits of hard cheese he had thrown out to them. Then, by grad- ually moving the bits of cheese closer and closer, he finally got them to take the tid- bits right out of his hand. What a thrill! I often have them come close to me as I work in the garden. With their apparent lack of fear. I was able to get close to them with my cam- era (with telephoto lens) and sit about 15 feet away from the feeder. It was early in the morning and the dew was still on the grass. As I sat there I saw three cedar waxwings fly out of the big holly tree where they were feeding on last year's berries. I also had time to observe a large car- penter bee (similar tc a bumblebee) in the siding of the nearby tool shed. What brought my attention to it was the sawdust that kept falling to the ground. This bee literally cuts out a cavity in wood (up to a foot in length) in which it then places a se- ries of egg chambers, each with its own pocket of pollen and honey. The pocket will later supply the hatching young with food until they emerge from the well - protected cells. It was- n't long before I was rewarded by my catbird appearing at the feeder. Click! and another click! One more for good measure and my photo job was complete. It's assignments like this that "make my day." June 22, 2000 • The Suffolk Times • 7A MGot Here's a `secret' solution Last week a call came from a con- cerned reader who had found a col- lection of bees in his neighbor's hedge. What happens when bees be- come overcrowded in their hives is that they leave en masse to search out a new home. Until they find a new home you Focus are apt to see ON these clusters of bees almost any - NATURE where. Our by Paul caller's concern Stoutenburgh was mainly for his neighbor, an elderly lady who is legally blind. She enjoys her back yard and he was con- cerned she unknowingly might brush up against them and get stung. There's always that possibility, but when bees swarm they are rarely ag- gressive. The question was, "Could I suggest a solution ?" Surely they did- n't want to spray and kill the bees, for they are too important as pollina- tors to do anything as drastic as that. I told them the solution was quite simple. I'd come and get them. It was one of those cool overcast days that meant the bees would probably stay put. I told them I'd be right there to check them out and see if now would be the right time to get them or if it might be better to wait until later that evening. When Barbara and I arrived we met our caller, a person we found later had concern for all things "great and small." He took us to the yard next door and, sure enough, there was a swarm of honeybees massed in a privet hedge. They were huddled around their "queen" amongst the many branches of the hedge. This would make it difficult to collect them; nevertheless, I thought I could manage the task. Because of the overcast day, I thought it best to wait until evening. Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh Seeing we couldn't lure a hummingbird to our sugar -water feeder we were happy to settle for the friendly catbird. This all -gray catbird builds its nest in low shrubs and bushes. Its eggs are a beautiful blue like the robin's. Our caller would merely say he is no longer plagued by squirrels, and the geese that once littered his lawn with droppings are no longer a problem. So there you have it. You people whc are bothered by geese, get yourself a pair of foxes and let nature take its course. Hours later tounct us back at the swarm. I was surprised to see they had moved a short distance away un- der a 2x6 rait fence, a much better position for collecting. My only prob- lem was I couldn't collect them with the equipment I had brought, so I asked the wife if she had a box and she promptly showed up with a Vic- toria's Secret box just the right size. With the lid off I merely covered the swarm and wiped them from under the 2x6, every bee falling into the box. I then put the cover on and handed it to Barbara. It was as easy as that. Never before had a Victoria's Secret box held such a secret. Everyone was pleased with the evening's capture — everyone but Barbara, who sat in the front of the pickup with a box of Victoria's Secret bees on her lap. She said she could feel the heat from the box as they moved around inside. I must admit I drove a bit more carefully, as we could hear the aroused bees buzzing inside and didn't want to disturb them any more than necessary. I had previously set up some supers (bee boxes with comb inside), so all I had to do was lift off the top and set them in. I then plugged up the exit so they wouldn't get any ideas of taking off. I even fed them with a little honey and left them in their new home for the night. Next morning I removed the plug from the entrance and they immediately started buzzing around checking out their new location. I'm happy to report, days later, they are doing well, going in and out as they repair their new home and doing what bees do best, collecting nectar and pollen. Foxes doing well I was pleased to hear from another caller out on Nassau Point who had a den of foxes living under his utility shed. Foxes seem to eo in cvcles of abun- e're not sure if it's the "mange," as some people believe, or some other factor that limits their abundance. My per- sonal belief is that one reason could be man's use of rat and mouse poison. The rat or mouse eats the poison, goes outside in search of water and dies. Then along comes the fox who's always- looking for an easy meal; it eats the dead mouse or rat and in turn ingests the poison and dies. How can we prevent this accidental poisoning? Use a good old- fashioned snap trap. Evidently there was no such prob- lem of accidental poisoning out on Nassau Point. It must have been fun to watch the kits growing up, for I know from seeing them years ago that they play like baby puppies, rolling and frolicking with occasional yapping of a brother or sister when one bites too hard. My caller even produced a nice set of pictures of his little troop of foxes. They were so ad- venturesome that he took pictures of the young exploring his patio right outside his picture window. Of course, the young foxes have to eat, so no sooner are they weaned from the mother's milk than they re- quire meat in some form or another. On the opposite side of the coin, let's hope Mr. and Mrs. Fox stay on Nassau Point, for I can vouch from experience: foxes and my chickens don't mix. New visitor at feeder A few weeks ago we had the plea- sure of having a hummingbird visit us. Sorry to say, its visit lasted only a C ay. Because of its short stay, I thought it might be wise to get out the hummingbird feeders in hopes of luring one of those tiny jewels to stay Days and a week went by without seeing a hummingbird. In the mean- time a catbird discovered our sugar- water delight and started visiting our hummingbird feeder on a regular ba- sis. This was a new one for me so I had to document it on film. These all -gray catbirds are a lovely addition to any back yard for they are really quite tame and are easy to get to know. Years ago a good friend of mine. in East Marion had them lit- erally eating out of his hand. He found out that they enjoyed bits of hard cheese he had thrown out to them. Then, by grad- ually moving the bits of cheese closer and closer, he finally got them to take the tid- bits right out of his hand. What a thrill! I often have them come close to me as I work in the garden. With their apparent lack of fear. I was able to get close to them with my cam- era (with telephoto lens) and sit about 15 feet away from the feeder. It was early in the morning and the dew was still on the grass. As I sat there I saw three cedar waxwings fly out of the big holly tree where they were feeding on last year's berries. I also had time to observe a large car- penter bee (similar tc a bumblebee) in the siding of the nearby tool shed. What brought my attention to it was the sawdust that kept falling to the ground. This bee literally cuts out a cavity in wood (up to a foot in length) in which it then places a se- ries of egg chambers, each with its own pocket of pollen and honey. The pocket will later supply the hatching young with food until they emerge from the well - protected cells. It was- n't long before I was rewarded by my catbird appearing at the feeder. Click! and another click! One more for good measure and my photo job was complete. It's assignments like this that "make my day."