Double Trouble

[Beedogg]

I've three WBC hives. The Southern one is the one which (I think) produced some swarm cells about three weeks ago. I nuc'd the queen, let them hatch a new one and I saw what I thought was her heading off on her mating flight on Sunday afternoon, around 8 days after she'd emerged. That looked all more or less on-track. I hadn't looked through that hive since I nuc'd the original queen as I didn't want to disturb that colony with a young virgin queen. The other two colonies are smaller (around 6-8 frames of brood - one of them is the original queen from the Southern hive) and I had a good look through both on Sunday. No QCs and all looking fine and happy.

So today my wife came in and said "there are a lot of buzzing in the vegetable garden". I went out and sure enough there in an apple tree near the hives was a largish swarm - near but not actually on a swarm lure I'd put there months ago. I potted that swarm and popped them into a poly nuc where they seem to have settled. Then, I went round to look at the hives to see if I could detect a deficit of bees I noticed another swarm hanging from another branch on the other side of the same apple tree! I potted that one too and popped it into a spare nuc box.

So what's happened, I wonder?

I'm guessing that there are 3 explanations:

1. I suppose that one or both swarms may have come from the Southern hive. If so then I don't really understand how or why. It should have had a newly mated queen in it and she would by now have plenty of laying-room.
2. I suppose that one or both may have come from one of the other hives. But I'm pretty certain there were no sealed QCs in either on Sunday and neither hive is very full.
3. I suppose that one or both might be swarms from elsewhere, but I should have thought that the chances of two swarms arriving in the same tree at the same time are, to put it mildly, small.

Are there any other explanations?

 

[drex]

I have long since given up trying to guess why. Experience has shown that I can do all I can to prevent ( delay?) swarming and they still go. Prompt action on spotting swarm cells is what is needed. I might miss some and they might still go.
Not had a very swarmy season here though. For the first year ever there has been no luck with my bait hives ( yet).