Small animal in colony that is not a mouse; pile of dead bees, each with a hole in their thoraxthorax:
the middle region of the adult bee body, which lies in between the head and the abdomen; consists of three segments: pro-, meso-, and meta-thorax; thorax attachments include three pairs of legs and two pairs of wings
or headless.
Shrews are an uncommon, furry mammal that may be found inside weak or overwintered bee colonies lacking an entrance reducer. Shrews and moles do not build nests similar to mice. One species—the pygmy shrew—is a problem in maritime Canada and in isolated locations of northeastern and midwestern U.S.
The pygmy shrew is the smallest mammal native to North America. It can fit through a hole in a honey bee hive as little as 1 cm, and it only weighs an average of three grams. Bees fed on by pygmy shrews are headless or they may have a hole in their thoraxthorax:
the middle region of the adult bee body, which lies in between the head and the abdomen; consists of three segments: pro-, meso-, and meta-thorax; thorax attachments include three pairs of legs and two pairs of wings
.
mice, except shrews are smaller and do not build nests as mice do
Bozarth R. 2014. The Pygmy Shrew: A Little Mammal That Is Causing Big Problems In Canadian Overwintering Colonies. BeeInformed. Accessed 2023. https://beeinformed.org/2014/04/18/the-pygmy-shrew-a-little-mammal-that-is-causing-big-problems-in-canadian-overwintering-colonies/
Burlew R. 2016. The blaming of the shrew. Honey Bee Suite. Accessed 2023. https://www.honeybeesuite.com/blaming-shrew/
