Members winter hive losses for 2008/2009

[admin]

This thread is for members who have suffered winter hive losses during 2008/2009.

Please could you tell other members how many hives you lost, the number as a %, the age of the queen if known,The hive location,amount of honey harvested last year from hive and any other information you feel is relevant.

 

[Widdershins]

...could WHERE the queen came from be added too? I think that will be very interesting....

 

[Bcrazy]

Another common demise of a colony is starvation/

Regards;

 

[Finman]

Another common demise of a colony is starvation/

Regards;

In your pictures question is not about starvation. The colony had no instict to go into winter rest if it has so much brood.

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[Hivemaker.]

But they could easily of starved in july, or on the heather in august, as some did.

 

[admin]

As mine nearly did!

 

[Finman]

But they could easily of starved in july, or on the heather in august, as some did.

Surely they do if beekeeper does not take care on them. So do cows and dogs.

Should we talk about this winter losses ?

I look my hives next in Marsh after cleansing flight. Winter inspection helps nothing. I bett that 100% will be alive.

I know that my winter food is enough and if some one has not, it will die. Only reason is brooding during winter and my experience is that nothing helps then.


I know too that nosema will make harms and couple of queens may loose its ability to lay.

I have extra hives for those reason and and everything is again normal.

This winter has been exceptionally warm. Hives will be in better conditions than normally.
We have today +4C in Helsinki.

.
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[Hivemaker.]

The point i was making is, with all that brood, it was most likely not from a hive that starved in early january.

 

[Finman]

.
Some years ago I bought queens from Italy in May. After that I have had those "winter layers". It is southern genes. I do not worry. With crossings I got rid off chalkbrood which caused much more losses than one hive per winter.

Nothing is perfect in bekeeping, at its best only normal.

 

[Bcrazy]

The photo's in question were taken at the National Bee Unit at York whilst attending a NDB week long course. They were just a couple of frames shown in amongst other diseased frames, where we had to identify the problem within the different frames.

Regards;

 

[Hivemaker.]

Your Italians are now local bee's then Finman, do they now stop brooding all winter.

 

[Finman]

Your Italians are now local bee's then Finman, do they now stop brooding all winter.

Not at least last winter. I have not looked this winter what they are doing.

Yes, local bees, not even national. European Union maybe?

 

[Bcrazy]

Congratulations Hivemaker & Finman on becoming Field bees so now your allowed to go foraging for all sorts of information.

Regards;

 

[Finman]

.
OH BOY. Hivemaker 507 and me 508 I am a bristle bit better.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Off you go then Finman,foraging, i'm staying in the warm,keep the queen company.

 

[Bcrazy]

Hey Hivemaker, your trying to hustle in on my duties as a house bee, I'll look after the Queen while you, Finman and Admin fly orf and forage.

Regards; house bee

Admin I think we had better start another winter losses thread don't u?

 

[Hivemaker.]

Bcrazy, i know your plot,your just hoping we will get chilled and don't come back,so you get the queen to yourself. Tricky lot you house bee's.

 

[Bcrazy]

Perish the thought. I am supposed to bee a house bee going into winter not a drone.

Regards;

 

[Polyanwood]

Very funny. You boys almost had me believing that house bees were male!

 

[SteveH]

This thread is for members who have suffered winter hive losses during 2008/2009.

Please could you tell other members how many hives you lost, the number as a %, the age of the queen if known,The hive location,amount of honey harvested last year from hive and any other information you feel is relevant.

Checked all my hives today and found 1 nuc had died out. According to my records it had 3 seams of bees when I did the OA treatment a month ago, but on opening it up there were between 50 and 100 dead bees clustered between two frames. Plenty of stores present, just not where they had clustered.

My first loss in 3 years.

That's a loss of just over 11% (1 out of 9). The queen was from 2008 and was being overwintered in case I had any queenless colonies in the spring.