Gutted!!!!

[Curly green finger's]

In two days two of my mini nucs have been robbed out by bee's.
Very gutted as these were two queen's from my old girl .

I have one smaller nuc which I've removed from the same apiary as they have also been robbed but just about OK.
Bloody robbing bees!!!!!

 

[Erichalfbee]

Thats a bugger!
That’s the trouble with small colonies at this time of year.

 

[rolande]

Thats a bugger!
That’s the trouble with small colonies at this time of year.

and big ones that lack heart

 

[Ian123]

and big ones that lack heart

It’s called nature!

 

[Curly green finger's]

I'm just over a week into feeding and treating that apiary, I was trying to hold of on the feeding waiting for the ivy which is a week away at least.
I suppose I'm shocked how just in two days little mini nuc colonys can be rodded, I was only marking the one queen as she was going on a journey a couple of days ago, I should of sent her that day.

 

[Polymorph]

Had exactly the same issue and had to move the nucs. My mistake as I tried to supplement the nucs with young bees, but started up robbing. I did manage to then move them and hide them in a thicket of bushes where I cut a way in and also provided a route to the sky for them. Only about 100m away from where they were, but the camouflage seemed sufficient.

 

[Ian123]

I'm just over a week into feeding and treating that apiary, I was trying to hold of on the feeding waiting for the ivy which is a week away at least.
I suppose I'm shocked how just in two days little mini nuc colonys can be rodded, I was only marking the one queen as she was going on a journey a couple of days ago, I should of sent her that day.

It could well have been your last inspection that started it off. If your going through hives and there’s little or no forage available they’ll be on the prowl. If you notice any inquisitive bees when inspecting small Nucs close up ASAP.

 

[Erichalfbee]

It could well have been your last inspection that started it off. If your going through hives and there’s little or no forage available they’ll be on the prowl. If you notice any inquisitive bees when inspecting small Nucs close up ASAP.

Clearing supers too. I always find dead foreign bees over the clearer boards if I’ve actually had a look inside any if they supers before clearing

 

[oliver90owner]

It’s called nature!

Not really true. More like expecting human interference to be perfect. In nature bees usually set up home some distance away from the parent colony, not in the confines of an apiary along with umpteen other colonies.

 

[pargyle]

Not really true. More like expecting human interference to be perfect. In nature bees usually set up home some distance away from the parent colony, not in the confines of an apiary along with umpteen other colobies.

Theres a couple of basic lessons here ... small or weak colonies are at risk of being robbed at this time of the year and should be located away from strong colonies. Any beekeeper actions that may attract attention to a free and easily accessible source of honey (or feeders) should be avoided at all cost in the vicinity of other stronger colonies. Add feeders late in the evening if you have to ...

Just have to think about things really. Sadly, once robbing starts it's the devils own job to stop without moving the robbed colony well away ... and a robbing frenzy will empty the robbed box in no time...

Beginners (and it seems some non-.beginners) should take note !

 

[Erichalfbee]

Yes I spend much effort making sure all my colonies are really strong for autumn. Nucs are fine as long as they are stuffed with bees
Never tried anything smaller

 

[madasafish]

I am in the process of combining mini nucs for winter.
I have been far less troubled by robbing this year: far fewer wasps. (Spring weather)

And I have sited most of the small mini nucs within thickets of buddleia or apple trees. (Savage pruning required at times for inspections and feeding.)

Feed nucs mainly fondant. Syrup after 7pm when it is growing darker.

 

[Boston Bees]

This is my favourite nuc at the moment. They are absolutely tiny, having struggled to make themselves a properly mated queen (they tried once and instantly superceded her - their newly mated queen only started laying properly 3 weeks ago or so).

Despite their very low numbers, from dawn to dusk they mount this guard on their entrance. Curious bees and wasps are completely deterred. It definitely helps that they are in this type of Maisemore nuc, with the narrow, dark, tunnel like entrance.

I have fed fondant, but no syrup to avoid triggering anything. Good luck to them. I think they'll make it, touch wood. Just shows that it's the size of the fight in the dog, not the size of the dog in the fight, to some extent anyway.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Heavens that’s some guard. Well done bees

 

[rolande]

Another useful

Just shows that it's the size of the fight in the dog, not the size of the dog in the fight, to some extent anyway.

Exactly. My point about heart is just this.

Some colonies that look strong to us just seem to crumble under pressure while I've often seen small nucs in the near vicinity left alone. These small ones would seem to be fair game to a large attack but it's as if the robbers can guage the reward/effort involved.

 

[pargyle]

Another useful


Exactly. My point about heart is just this.

Some colonies that look strong to us just seem to crumble under pressure while I've often seen small nucs in the near vicinity left alone. These small ones would seem to be fair game to a large attack but it's as if the robbers can guage the reward/effort involved.

Trouble is unless you are really in touch with your bees and can instantly see what is going on the risk when it's a small colony is great when it comes to being robbed.

Whilst I totally accept that some colonies appear far more capable of defending the hive than others... it's almost impossible to predict whether they are ... and before you know it.. it's too late. The two saddest sights in beekeeping in my beekeeping experience ... a colony you have managed to starve and one that has fought to the last bee and has been robbed out !

Mind you.... when you see AFB and know you are about to see a colony destroyed would top of the list... I've never had the misfortune to be in that situation.

 

[Swarm]

Another useful


Exactly. My point about heart is just this.

Some colonies that look strong to us just seem to crumble under pressure while I've often seen small nucs in the near vicinity left alone. These small ones would seem to be fair game to a large attack but it's as if the robbers can guage the reward/effort involved.

Absolutely agree. I have a few small nucs on the same site as a lot of this years production hives, colonies still big and they just lost their honey.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I have a waspbane next to each nuc. The traps have caught a fair few wasps but I found this inside one today so dismantled it

 

[hemo]

Ivy bee, good move.
One reason why I don't use insect traps of any kind.

One can see why it could be mistaken for something else and be killed by paranoid people.

 

[Erichalfbee]

It’s a hornet.