newbie - whats my queen up to??

[beesleybees]

Hi guys,

I had a look in one of my hives yesterday and couldnt find the queen. She is marked and the hives not busting at the seams with bees so I should have been able to find her. Not one sealed cell.

Ive been worrying about it all night, so Ive had another quick look today. I again could not find the queen, still not one sealed cell. I have found 2 day old eggs so im wondering if ive missed her and she is just a late layer or wether i have a laying worker!!! There are a few drones in the hive.

what do you think i should do?? should i wait 3 or 4 days and see how the eggs i have seen have been capped?? or should i just take the chance and unite them with another colony. im positive i wont have missed her, but theres always that 1% risk that i have

 

[Rosti]

Wait, wait, wait!

It's is rather too early for frequent and intrusive inspections (never a good idea even in prime season). You found some eggs, no sealed brood. No advantage to looking again. Give it a week, then have another look. Be mindfull of the weather when doing so, it's very early in the year for frequent inspection. If the weather is poor sobeit, wait some more! What is happening at the entrance? If you do get capped brood what does it look like, flat or domed?

Q may be starting to lay now from your observations but everytime you inspect you put them back a few days. It is still mid March, we aren't in to the season proper yet.

As a final point, you list as having no hives, from your post that appears inaccurate. If you do have other hives and you discover the worst then I think I would combine and then look to split later in the year. I think it is much, much too early to embark on forcing queen cells by donated eggs or hoping for succesful queen mating until late April / early May.

If you don't have multiple hives currently then post your actual circumstances to assist with receiving more accurate advice. R

 

[beesleybees]

Wait, wait, wait!

It's is rather too early for frequent and intrusive inspections (never a good idea even in prime season). You found some eggs, no sealed brood. No advantage to looking again. Give it a week, then have another look. Be mindfull of the weather when doing so, it's very early in the year for frequent inspection. If the weather is poor sobeit, wait some more! What is happening at the entrance? If you do get capped brood what does it look like, flat or domed?

Q may be starting to lay now from your observations but everytime you inspect you put them back a few days. It is still mid March, we aren't in to the season proper yet.

As a final point, you list as having no hives, from your post that appears inaccurate. If you do have other hives and you discover the worst then I think I would combine and then look to split later in the year. I think it is much, much too early to embark on forcing queen cells by donated eggs or hoping for succesful queen mating until late April / early May.

If you don't have multiple hives currently then post your actual circumstances to assist with receiving more accurate advice. R

thanx rosti,

Totally under what your saying about it being too early but I just want to make sure the swarms i collected last year had made it through the winter and have enough stores. The other 2 swarms i have are fine, queen spotted and they are laying well. Just this particular colony that im worried about.

im just worried that ill leave it too long and as the winter bees will be dying off, im worried it will just collapse without any brood. I'll leave it a week and see how they get capped. The eggs where at the bottom of the cells from what i seen but there was a few cell with multiple eggs so its either down to her being newly mated last year or it is indeed a laying worker, i guess only time will tell. I was hoping to put them on OSR this year

 

[Midland Beek]

An egg is an egg for only three days. What do you think was laying them? Queen marking paint wears off and the marking discs fall off.

 

[protheroe]

An egg is an egg for only three days. What do you think was laying them? Queen marking paint wears off and the marking discs fall off.

i often have to re-mark queens because the paint rubs off and as mb stated ,you have eggs in the hive so her majesty should be in there somewhere

 

[John_W]

Observations..

If you watch the entrance.. is there plenty of pollen going in?

If so.. good bet the queen is there and laying. Its too early to be going through them. Many people seem to be inspecting early this year..

 

[Hivemaker.]

Many people seem to be inspecting early this year..

Good job that some of them are,if the weather stays good and the colonys being very strong as many are....swarming fever will soon kick in.

 

[oliver90owner]

Its too early to be going through them. Many people seem to be inspecting early this year..

Someone asked the question re first looks into hive over a month ago.

They were told that it was too early - they should be left until 'such and such' date, but I recall saying it may be a couple of weeks, or perhaps a couple of months, depending on the weather NOT the date.

Bees don't work to dates. I saw a post earlier today, where a farmer is predicting OSR in bloom in a week, in Lincolnshire. How can one possibly predict what the weather patterns are going to be? And no point in waiting for a set date, that is for sure if things are progressing very much earlier than expected.

Yes, it may turn cold next week and severely disrupt the spring expansion - chilled brood and all sorts, but I have certainly never worked to the old historical 'fixed dates' for the last decade.

 

[enrico]

This is such a common problem. Please please please be patient. It is so easy with forums like this ( good as they are) to believe the worst. Your bees want to survive. It is often easier to see eggs than a queen. Believe what you have seen and trust in HM.
You may go all year as a newbie without seeing HM. Theyare illusive little beasts. Give it a couple of weeks and have another peek. The important thing is not to open your hive just to look for the worst! Only open it for a purpose. Maybe to check store or for q cells. It will all come right....
E

 

[Erichalfbee]

First inspection 22nd this year, 25th last year so not much difference.
My two big hives are really busy but weather set to break next weekend. No swallows here yet

 

[exmoorbee]

I think I'm right in saying there seem to be lots of people in the midlands and northwards inc N wales who think it's too early to be inspecting, and lots of us on the south coast and sheltered spots worried we have already left it too late. I Found two play cups on wednesday.

a North / South divide....

maybe we're all right...

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

a North / South divide....
QUOTE]

Maybe east West as well - drove from Gravesend to Glanaman Wednesday - all the hedges bursting with may blossom,hawthorn buds beginning to open and plenty of dandelions. By the time I was home pussywillow, the odd dandelion and primrose - a little bit of green showing on the hawthorn now though - but not much

 

[Baggyone]

My first queen was unmarked and I never bothered to look for her. All the signs are on the combs. You do not need to see her. Too much of a "must see the queen" IMHO.

Baggy

 

[oliver90owner]

Well put Baggyone. KISS principle. I only look for her if I need to find her. Generally easy to find (if not smoked), and if I miss her I don't get overly bothered -there are always other ways to find her or to achieve the same end result.

 

[Tom Bick]

Good job that some of them are,if the weather stays good and the colonys being very strong as many are....swarming fever will soon kick in.

That’s so right its local conditions that’s important.

Someone saying its to early are perhaps referring to their conditions and micro climate.

Swarms will be early this year especially in the south east it will be better to stay ahead of the game than play catch up.

 

[Rosti]

Too much of a "must see the queen" IMHO.Baggy

eggs and capped worker brood, job done. When I started I marked and I looked hard, it was comforting to see her. In reality you can see her through the evidence of her activity.

That said I marked 2 queens today on hives I have targeted for future combination. Sometimes you must find her and a delay would be inconvienient, some help is no bad thing.

One size doesn't always fit all.

 

[Andre cardona]

An egg is an egg for only three days. What do you think was laying them? Queen marking paint wears off and the marking discs fall off.

 

[Robbie & Jans Bees]

I think we are going to have a nice spring check my hives yesterday alls well lots of honey and brood down here in Cornwall it reached 22 C some OSR is just showing in fields may flower buding as well?

 

[kevinrrogers67]

OSR starting to flower in Kent!!

 

[Hebeegeebee]

My best guess would be that if there is no sealed brood, and a reasonable amount of workers then there's a good chance that the queen is a duff one (or you have laying workers).

As a collected swarm, you presumably don't know the age of the queen so she could have been replaced or just keeled over.

If the queen is duff - maybe an unmated later supercedure queen, so don't look for the paint markings - she will start to lay drone eggs. I wonder that the workers may remove them as they don't want drones at this time of year - especially in a small colony. Something to check for. She could be busy laying and then the eggs are removed (in the way bees will remove diploid drones). If larvae develop you'll need to wait until they are capped/nearly capped to be sure that they are not gentlemen bees.

Compare this colony to others. If they are all going well and this one isn't, then is it even worth rescuing, assuming the queen does come into lay?

Compare the temperament of the colony and your other colonies to your notes of last year too. Not a definitive indication but considering their behaviour - you may be inclined to think that a queen may or may not be in the hive.

If you can't find a queen then you can unite with another colony with newspaper. Even if she's there and you unite, chances are that the strong good queen would remain as the bees know a good'un. They would not want to remove a laying queen for a sterile one.

Drones could be an indication of queen-duffness.

Examples:_ My colonies have the odd drone cell nothing more, The two colonies that have reasonable numbers of drone brood/drones are
a) One that had an unmarked DLQ which had replaced a clipped and marked one over winter. (Queen removed and box united with another colony).
b) A 3 year old queen that's not performing brilliantly - less brood than other hives. (My guess is an indication that she will be replaced sooner rather than later).