Beehive mouse guard

01 · THE TWO POSITIONS

Wintering one way up, transport the other

In the winter position the lower openings let bees through and narrow the entrance, which also hinders rodents from getting in once the colony has drawn back and no longer defends the whole entrance. Turned over, the row of perforations keeps air moving with the exit closed: that is the position for moving hives. A ventilated closure does not make every journey safe, though — weather, load and duration still rule.

02 · HOW IT FITS

The real gap in the floor decides, not the hive model

The plate slides into the entrance gap and the 7 mm folded lip rests on the edge of the floor, which is what stops it going in too far. So the first thing is to measure the usable gap: 190 × 36 mm is for a nuc and 378 × 36 mm for a hive, but floors vary between makers and production runs. A little extra width can be filed down and it goes in; if it is short, there is no fix. And plastic floors with a wider entrance — the Nicot type — need the part from that same system.

03 · WHAT IT DOES NOT DO

It is no insect barrier, and it has no summer position

Worth saying, because it is the most asked question: a bee gets through its openings, so it will not stop a smaller insect — beetles included — nor does it work as an Asian hornet guard. What it reduces is the entrance width and rodent access. It has no fully open summer position either: when the colony is at full strength and needs the whole entrance, take it off. Its ground is wintering and transport.

04 · BEFORE YOU BUY

Measure your floor's gap and choose by that number, not by the hive's name. If you keep nucs and hives in the same apiary, know how many of each: these are two separate references, not one adjustable part.