Need honey!

Now - end February to the beginning of March is the time to conduct your first thorough inspection of your hives.  IF you see Small Hive Beatles, now is the moment to keep them in check!  An over abundance of SHBs this early in the season will divert your bees attention from brood rearing.and gathering nectar to trying to coral these freeloader.  

To reverse this outcome, you need to place your hive beetle traps on where the bees are more active.   As your hive grows in size,  consider adding at least 2-3 hive beetle traps per hive box.