Covered in bees(me)

[Amari]

I think what people are trying to say is that...... You already have a queen in there as you have eggs, another queen emerging is going to give them two options. They could kill one of the queen's themselves which is really so unlikely at this time of the year, or they could swarm. When they swarm is up to them. The main problem now is you will probably never know if they have swarmed so you are left wondering if they are going to go or if that has already happened! Swarming takes ten minutes and your hive will look exactly the same after a swarm as it did before!
I think all you can do now is leave them and see what does happen but please be prepared with kit to take a swarm should one come out!
I am not sure who had the idea of the brood box of stores above the crown board but ...... Better in jars!
Bees are a challenge. You often have to try things and think out of the box but tried and tested seems to win in the end!
Best of luck. Keep us updated.
E

There is a queen and two QCs were found. Maybe this is supercedure?

 

[enrico]

There is a queen and two QCs were found. Maybe this is supercedure?

I wouldn't want to bet on it!

 

[user 819]

If the Q is still in residence then I think a swarm leaving is v.high at this time of year.

 

[Kaz]

Hello, I currently have five BS hives at the bottom of my garden, all but one have new queens and are generally well behaved and working well…..the fifth one I believe may be queenless as the last inspection seven days ago there was no sealed brood, eggs or larvae. I was considering a test frame today. It is on a double brood box as it was prolific last year. They gave me this year three good supers of honey and are presently filling another three supers. On today’s inspection, there was a roar on taking the crown board off, and as I took off the supers off more and more bees came out to surround me! I got as far as the first brood box and could quickly see from some of the frames I took out that it is full of stores, the bottom box from a very quick look appeared to be stores also but I put it all back together as I could not really see with so many bees on my veil and gloves. If there is no brood being produced should the numbers reduce? Not really sure what way to go as it it hard to manage a hive that defensive. About ten followed me into the trees and they stayed until they were dispatched by clapping!
What to do from here is the question.
regards

I feel your pain, I have a colony where to inspect I now wear double trousers, double long sleeves, double gloves and a woolly hat under my beesuit, even in the heatwave we've just had, just because I got stung so badly a few weeks ago through a single layer and my beesuit. Not fun at all. They will be requeened as soon as I have a decent queen to replace her with. My first attempt at rearing replacement queens failed dismally with the poor weather in May. Best of luck with resolving your colony's temperament.