Tartago® water-tray harp kit: harp, 15 W solar module and tray

01 · HOW IT WORKS

It works without attractant: it goes in the flight path

The harp uses no attractant, light or bait. It intercepts the Asian hornet lying in wait in front of the entrances: it goes between two neighbouring hives, at right angles to their fronts, so the hornet moving from one entrance to the next crosses the wires, while the bees fly straight out without passing through. Being bigger, the hornet touches two wires 20 mm apart; the discharge can stun it and drop it into the tray. Most bees pass between them without closing the circuit. If it catches little, watch the flight paths and check the power supply, connections, clean insulators and wire spacing. Adjust the position without getting in the way of the bees' flight.

02 · ASSEMBLY

Reckon on an afternoon in the workshop the first time

The wires are fitted and tensioned one by one onto the insulators: refer to the assembly video. A slack wire or a badly seated insulator encourages earth leaks. Screw the feet, which come pre-drilled, to a board to steady the harp against the wind. Follow the manual's order to keep the electrical insulation working in the rain.

03 · THE KIT AND HOW TO EXPAND

One module powers up to five harps

The module powers up to five harps in parallel. To expand, add for each bare harp its tray and a female/female extension to join it to the previous one. To move the module away from the harp, use the male/female one. The connectors are moisture-proof. Use the shut-off button with automatic discharge before touching the equipment.

04 · THE TRAY AND YOUR CONTROL FIGURE

A few drops of soap, and count what falls

The water tray catches what falls after the discharge. Add a few drops of washing-up liquid: it breaks the surface tension and stops a stunned hornet from floating off. A finger of water is enough; what matters is that the surface is unbroken. Record hornets, bees and other insects separately, along with the days the harp has been running. If bycatch increases, switch the unit off and check placement, wire spacing and upkeep before turning it back on. Also compare the hornets' hawking with the bees' foraging: the number caught does not on its own measure the pressure on the hives.

ELECTRICAL SAFETY

This is electrical equipment left outdoors. Switch it off at its button before handling the harp, the tray or the wires, and never assemble it with the module connected. The button discharges automatically, so once off the circuit is dead.

05 · WATER OR DRY

If you would rather not depend on water, there is the dry kit

The dry kit has the harp with a hopper instead of a tray, and the solar module with lithium battery. The two harps differ in this:

Everything else is the same: 60 cm wide, 0.35 mm stainless wire at 20 mm and the same electric modules.

06 · BEFORE YOU BUY

Harps work mainly in summer and autumn: set them up when you detect hornet pressure and check their effect on foraging. They are protection for the apiary, not eradication: they can reduce attacks depending on installation and management; they do not remove the local population.