Martin G
New Bee
- Joined
- Apr 16, 2012
- Messages
- 75
- Reaction score
- 0
- Location
- Wales
- Hive Type
- National
- Number of Hives
- 6
What do you suppose are the reasons a colony could become aggressive?
I’ve got one that has grown well so far this year, with 2 supers both 90% full of stores and bias (no excluder).
For weeks it’s been very aggressive with the bees following me around 20M to my car. It takes about 10 minutes of wandering around to get them to ‘leave me alone’
7 days ago on inspection I found some sealed QC’s. Did a split with a QC in each.
Yesterday there were three more QC’s in the original hive so I left them as they were, perhaps they’ll swarm and take the angry queen elsewhere. Knowing my luck into a bait hive and it’ll all start again!
The confusing thing is that the QC’s are sealed and there doesn’t seem to have been any reduction in colony size as if they’d swarmed. But there are only ever a few QC’s not several as you may expect.
I’ve though about them being Q’less but that wouldn’t explain their behaviour earlier in the year, and where would the QC’s have come from. They’re Proper swarm cells not emergency or supersedure, but I suppose they may have not read the book telling them about cell types and they could be supersedure cells.
In all other respects it’s a thriving colony which is doing well. Perhaps they’re just anti-beesuite! Activists for the free bee league, who knows.
Ideas welcomed,
Martin
I’ve got one that has grown well so far this year, with 2 supers both 90% full of stores and bias (no excluder).
For weeks it’s been very aggressive with the bees following me around 20M to my car. It takes about 10 minutes of wandering around to get them to ‘leave me alone’
7 days ago on inspection I found some sealed QC’s. Did a split with a QC in each.
Yesterday there were three more QC’s in the original hive so I left them as they were, perhaps they’ll swarm and take the angry queen elsewhere. Knowing my luck into a bait hive and it’ll all start again!
The confusing thing is that the QC’s are sealed and there doesn’t seem to have been any reduction in colony size as if they’d swarmed. But there are only ever a few QC’s not several as you may expect.
I’ve though about them being Q’less but that wouldn’t explain their behaviour earlier in the year, and where would the QC’s have come from. They’re Proper swarm cells not emergency or supersedure, but I suppose they may have not read the book telling them about cell types and they could be supersedure cells.
In all other respects it’s a thriving colony which is doing well. Perhaps they’re just anti-beesuite! Activists for the free bee league, who knows.
Ideas welcomed,
Martin
