Beeconcerned
New Bee
- Joined
- May 28, 2011
- Messages
- 45
- Reaction score
- 0
- Location
- Nr Bath
- Hive Type
- National
- Number of Hives
- 2
I inspected my hives this afternoon. Although heavy, One was unexpectedly dead and empty of bees, so I brought it in to protect the honey from predators. At the end of a super frame (no excluder) I found about a dozen static and seemingly dead bees. I brushed these off, and found the queen was one of them. With nothing to lose, I put them in a plastic tub on a radiator. Most have revived and are active, the queen is very active. I have put in a few drops of water and honey.
The question is what to do now. Has anyone any ideas for a heroic rescue?
I have 2 other hives with good clusters which seem to be doing well.
Background. This queen was very prolific. This 'dead' hive was my strongest colony this year, and it was full of bees going in to winter. On the last inspection a couple of weeks ago on a mild day, it was active and there was pollen going in. There were a few dead pupae and dead workers below the hive and along the flight path, but nothing alarming. There were more today, but still not huge numbers, and no big pile on the floor. My hives were prepared for winter as 2 boxes with Celotex and fondant on top in case. There are full combs of sealed honey in the center of both the brood and super boxes, and alongside and above the the tiny frozen 'cluster' today. I am unable to find any obvious reason for the colony 'collapse' other than maybe clustering in an empty comb area during the cold weather, and I can't help feeling guilty.
Anyhow, any practical suggestions will be welcome.
The question is what to do now. Has anyone any ideas for a heroic rescue?
I have 2 other hives with good clusters which seem to be doing well.
Background. This queen was very prolific. This 'dead' hive was my strongest colony this year, and it was full of bees going in to winter. On the last inspection a couple of weeks ago on a mild day, it was active and there was pollen going in. There were a few dead pupae and dead workers below the hive and along the flight path, but nothing alarming. There were more today, but still not huge numbers, and no big pile on the floor. My hives were prepared for winter as 2 boxes with Celotex and fondant on top in case. There are full combs of sealed honey in the center of both the brood and super boxes, and alongside and above the the tiny frozen 'cluster' today. I am unable to find any obvious reason for the colony 'collapse' other than maybe clustering in an empty comb area during the cold weather, and I can't help feeling guilty.
Anyhow, any practical suggestions will be welcome.
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