Bees dead in the hive, not sure how

[Ian123]

I don’t look inside a hive at Xmas time as the weather is cold, well below the temp inside the cluster.

That’s unfortunate you may actually find the answers you’re looking for or be in a better position to comment? I can guarantee you that if you do look and are sensible about the process you’ll do no harm.

 

[rdartington]

we've yet to see proof of this 'many' either half a dozen or so is neither here nor there

I thought I had posted this extract from Wally Thrale’s March advice note to all Beds BKA members, 450 or so.
Wally is speculating that stored ivy left too little space for the brood that needed to become winter bees. There I do not agree with him, as my understanding is that winter bees emerge in late Sep/Oct, therefore from eggs laid in early Sep. But again, I am possibly/probably wrong you will say.
Wally;

 

[rdartington]

That’s unfortunate you may actually find the answers you’re looking for or be in a better position to comment? I can guarantee you that if you do look and are sensible about the process you’ll do no harm.

Really?
What guarantee are you offering to cover opening brood boxes and taking out brood frames in temps of around 2deg will do no harm? Does the guarantee cover providing me with replacement colonies if mine die?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Really?
What guarantee are you offering to cover opening brood boxes and taking out brood frames in temps of around 2deg will do no harm? Does the guarantee cover providing me with replacement colonies if mine die?

When the university of Sussex did their research on vsh bees that is exactly what they did. Opened the colonies in the winter to apply Oxalic acid first removing any brood. Their experiments showed that you could get away with one application of Oxalic every year if the colony was broodless and you had a hygienic queen.
Their research fell apart for other reasons.

 

[JamezF]

Some very good beeks expressed concern regarding Apivar resistance some time ago!

I had a bit of a grub about on that interweb about this perhaps six months ago. Some people in the UK have clearly not had the success they expected with Apivar and that does sometimes appear to have been assumed to be resistance to Amitraz. I couldn't find a definitive study that had taken place in the UK though. My recollection is that there was definitely resistance in one area in the USA, but I had the impression that it wasn't considered a problem elsewhere.

James

 

[Polymorph]

I thought I had posted this extract from Wally Thrale’s March advice note to all Beds BKA members, 450 or so.
Wally is speculating that stored ivy left too little space for the brood that needed to become winter bees. There I do not agree with him, as my understanding is that winter bees emerge in late Sep/Oct, therefore from eggs laid in early Sep. But again, I am possibly/probably wrong you will say.
Wally;
View attachment 35754

Interesting note, though it doesn't reflect my experience. I've had hives overwinter on just ivy with no adverse effect. What I did find this last winter was that the hive weights were lower by end December than previous winters. This could have been perhaps due to more activity with little forage in oct/nov or the following cold period. Either way bigger drop in weight and no brood nest constraint. Checking hives today, I only had one hive with residual ivy stores as a problem. The rest had brood across all eleven frames.

 

[JamezF]

my understanding is that winter bees emerge in late Sep/Oct, therefore from eggs laid in early Sep.

I think you need to get away from this whole calendar-based schedule for how the bees will behave.

James

 

[Erichalfbee]

I had a bit of a grub about on that interweb about this perhaps six months ago. Some people in the UK have clearly not had the success they expected with Apivar and that does sometimes appear to have been assumed to be resistance to Amitraz. I couldn't find a definitive study that had taken place in the UK though. My recollection is that there was definitely resistance in one area in the USA, but I had the impression that it wasn't considered a problem elsewhere.

James

Pete little reported whole apiaries resistant to Apivar.

 

[JamezF]

Pete little reported whole apiaries resistant to Apivar.

Yes, I'm aware he did. Which is quite difficult to interpret given that he was hardly a million miles away from me (fewer than twenty, in fact) and I don't appear to have a problem with it. Nor have I heard anyone else at my local BKA (Taunton) suggesting that it's a problem locally.

James

 

[Ian123]

Really?
What guarantee are you offering to cover opening brood boxes and taking out brood frames in temps of around 2deg will do no harm? Does the guarantee cover providing me with replacement colonies if mine die?

I think you’re being pedantic….you could possibly ask a sensible question if you’re curious? As to covering replacement colonies are there many to replace

Back about 2002 an Italian friend told me about oxalic trickle the advice was at the time to open the hive inspect and to cut out any sealed brood. Now my initial response was you can’t do that and his brother was in f….ing italy. He kindly explained his brother does it in 6ft of snow
So I picked the advised time of early Jan and we duly inspected. It got to the point that we found no brood in the first dozen or so they were trickled and put back together. No Winter losses in that first group we inspected! In subsequent years I’ve had regular pokes into hives over the winter assessing when brood rearing stops when it starts in both poly and wooden hives!

As an example this season I’ve hives in 2 spots at home a dozen in a nice sunny spot at the top and more at the bottom. Of these dozen all bar 3 have been looked at over the winter. Funnily enough the only loss in that group was in 1 that wasn’t looked in Having done this for many years I’m confident in what I’ve said!
So would I advise beginners to do it obviously not! But you have a reasonable level of competence? And no you don’t do it at 2 degrees.

 

[Ian123]

Pete little reported whole apiaries resistant to Apivar.

Yes and that was a while ago!…….. we’ve seen it before with Apistan so it certainly warrants consideration IF…those that have treated and lost bees. ATM we have an ivy theory and few here reporting large scale losses! If not now it will be a bridge to cross in the not to distant future I’m sure.

 

[Moobee]

Loads of ivy round my apiary and worked heavily by the bees in the autumn. I have a mix of mongrels - one hive very yellow & stripey, one quite dark, the other a mix of the two. Very mild winter so bees all flying whenever the sun was out right through the winter. So much activity that they were light by end of November and I had to add fondant which was topped up twice by February. Treated with Apilife Var in the autumn and OA vaped in December. No losses from main hives so far…. Only casualty is the nuc with a DLQ but that was 50/50 anyway.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I thought I had posted this extract from Wally Thrale’s March advice note to all Beds BKA members, 450 or so.
Wally is speculating that stored ivy left too little space for the brood that needed to become winter bees. There I do not agree with him, as my understanding is that winter bees emerge in late Sep/Oct, therefore from eggs laid in early Sep. But again, I am possibly/probably wrong you will say.
Wally;
View attachment 35754

Wally who?
loads of surmise,assumptions and fake science with very little to supportt it in there isn't there? ivy gives bees dysentery!! that's the first time I've ever heard that little cracker

 

[rdartington]

Wally who?
loads of surmise,assumptions and fake science with very little to supportt it in there isn't there? ivy gives bees dysentery!! that's the first time I've ever heard that little cracker

So you may have learnt something!

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

So you may have learnt something!

only that you are clutching at straws quoting an obscure 'source' which has a very tenuous connection to any facts
Does he have any evidence that ivy honey causes dysentery in bees?

 

[Erichalfbee]

I think we are going round in circles so not much point in keeping this thread open.