Since invention in 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 newest technologies if it’s to work when confronted with growing habitat loss, pollution, pesticide use and the spread of worldwide pathogens.

Enter 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 over a regular basis, smart hives monitor colonies 24/7, and so can alert beekeepers towards the dependence on intervention the moment a challenge situation occurs.

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

Although begin to see the economic potential of smart hives-more precise pollinator management will surely have significant effect on the bottom line of farmers, orchardists and commercial beekeepers-Wilson-Rich and the team at the best Bees is most encouraged by their impact on bee health. “In the U.S. we lose up to 50 % of our bee colonies annually.“ Says Wilson-Rich. “Smart hives accommodate more precise monitoring and treatment, which can often mean a tremendous improvement in colony survival rates. That’s a victory for everyone on this planet.”

The 1st smart hives to be sold utilize solar power, micro-sensors and smart phone apps to evaluate 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 in some cases, bee count.

Weight. Monitoring hive weight gives beekeepers a sign of the start and stop of nectar flow, alerting them to the call to feed (when weight is low) and to harvest honey (when weight is high). Comparing weight across hives gives beekeepers a sense the relative productivity of every colony. A spectacular drop in weight can advise that the colony has swarmed, or the hive has been knocked over by animals.

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

Humidity. While honey production creates a humid environment in hives, excessive humidity, specially in the winter, could be a danger to colonies. Monitoring humidity levels let beekeepers understand that moisture build-up is happening, indicating any excuses for better ventilation and water removal.

CO2 levels. While bees can tolerate better numbers of CO2 than humans, excessive levels can kill them. Monitoring CO2 levels can alert beekeepers on the need to ventilate hives.

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

Bee count. Counting the number of bees entering and leaving a hive will give beekeepers a signal of the size and health of colonies. For commercial beekeepers this may indicate nectar flow, and also the must relocate hives to more lucrative areas.

Mite monitoring. Australian scientists are using a new gateway to hives that where bees entering hives are photographed and analyzed to ascertain if bees have found mites while away from hive, alerting beekeepers in the need to treat those hives in order to avoid mite infestation.

Some of the more advanced (and costly) smart hives are created to automate much of standard beekeeping work. These normally 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 getting ready to swarm, automated hives can adjust hive conditions, preventing a swarm from occurring.

Mite treatment. When sensors indicate the use of mites, automated hives can release anti-mite treatments including formic acid. Some bee scientists are experimenting with CO2, allowing levels to climb sufficient in hives to kill mites, although not adequate to endanger bees. Others will work on the prototype of your hive “cocoon” that raises internal temperatures to 108 degrees, a degree 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 loads of honey, self-harvesting hives can split cells, allowing honey to drain beyond specifically created frames into containers below the hives, prepared to tap by beekeepers.

While smart hives are merely start to be adopted by beekeepers, forward thinkers in the market already are looking at the next-gen of technology.
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