A simple pollen trap with a bamboo collector drawer

by William Ramirez B, Facultad de Agronomia, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica.

In February 1987, while I was working with FAO in Honduras on Africanized bees , I had the opportunity to see the most simple and cheap pollen trap I have across come during 30 years of beekeeping. The pollen trap was shown to me by Mr Alonso Suazo Caliz, a beekeeper assistant at the Escuela Agricola Panamericana, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

To make the pollen trap: find a bamboo section of the same length as the front of your hive (for Langstroth use a piece approximately 40cm long) and 10cm in diameter: slice the bamboo longitudinally into two halves. These two halves provide two drawers. Cut a section of wire screen (10 x 40)cm with a gauge of 2.5mm and attach it horizontally to the bamboo drawers. Slide the hive brood chamber forward over the bottom board to the end of the landing board. Cut a section of wire screen (5 x 40)cm with a gauge of 5mm and attach it vertically closing the entrance of the hive (A*). Hang the drawer under the hive entrance and the pollen trap is ready to work. Finally, use a thin strip of board to close the opening at the back of the hive (B*) left open when the brood chamber was pushed forward.

* Please see the original journal article for the diagram.