Queenless due to theft.

[kazmcc]

Hi everyone. Sorry I've not been on lately, but I thought I'd share with you what has happened up at the hive recently.

We were waiting for our mentor, so the whole group were there, and the couple who have a colony on the allotments also turned up. He suited up and stomped off to open my girls, which I put a stop to. Well, he wouldn't like it if I just wandered onto his plot and fiddled with his, would he? Anyway, he came away and we carried on waiting. The girls were all over the front of the hive, obviously anxious over something, but it was the first hot day after all that rain and cold, so I put it down to that as it was very hot.
The guys wife then tells me they've got the same problem as us. Queenless. I told her we weren't queenless, she is laying nicely it's just she's elusive and unmarked. Married berks looked at each other.
Once the mentor arrived I opened and immediately noticed a frame missing from the middle of the deep brood box. It was obvious, and "whoever" had took it, didn't even push the rest of the frames together to try and hide the fact. Bees were crazed. I pointed it out to replies of " surely not ". But the teacher who inspects with me every time agreed, and there was a whopping big gap where it should have been!
Couple slunked off.
So, to cut along story short, "whoever" took that frame, also took our Madge. She's gone. There are no eggs or grubs, I've kept checking. The girls are coping well but are now filling the cells that would have been used for egg with honey.

Today, I found 4 nice big queen cells, all on one frame. My mentor is allowing me to rear my own queen and I can't wait! I'm just waiting on instructions now. I think I know what to do, but I'm still under his tutorship, so will do it his way. Can you believe the stupidity of some beekeepers? I want to go there and kick his nuts, but I represent the school, so can't

 

[grizzly]

Sorry to hear that Kaz, thats really underhand and pretty damn low of someone.

Glad i dont share my apiary now.

Enjoy the raising of your new Queen, hope she is a good one.

 

[psafloyd]

Why did this guy want to open up your hive? DId he think YOU had stolen HIS queen? And he thought he could just open up your hive because he felt like it?

I would make it very clear to him, the site stewards and the committee if you have one that you do not appreciate his behaviour and you would not expect it to be repeated.

 

[greatbritishhoney]

Sounds like a clear case of theft and should be reported to the police.

 

[kazmcc]

I reckon he just wanted a frame with eggs. Because the hive belongs to the school and we put it in the community garden, I think he thinks it's a free for all. Also, because he's had bees a year longer, we obviously need our work checking. Doesn't matter that he pointed out a drone as being the queen and it's his 3rd colony in two years. The pillock. I'm all livid again just thinking about it. I was just waiting until I knew for sure that we are queenless, and I've put a call in tonight to the woman who runs the allotments.

Also, the whole hive smells different. Could that be her pheremone I was smelling of?

 

[kazmcc]

Thank you Grizzly

I'm gonna be a mom

 

[drstitson]

"My mentor is allowing me to rear my own queen"

kaz - i know you are in a slightly complex setup regarding the bees BUT even so who's bees are they. You are free to make your own mistakes.

"mentor: a trusted friend, counselor or teacher, usually a more experienced person. Some professions have "mentoring programs" in which newcomers are paired with more experienced people, who advise them and serve as examples as they advance."

Nowhere in that definition does it say that a mentor is meant to control your every action.

BTW sorry to hear about the theft - perhaps in future you could use a suitable shade of MBS candle making foundation in your brood boxes to make stolen material stand out!

 

[aberreef]

Sneeky underhanded B*****DS. I can't believe anyone would have the audacity to do something like this

Does provid a fitting link to the 'Why say NO to doing a course?' thread though

 

[Juststarting]

Kaz - So sorry to hear your news. Its awful that someone can be so underhanded. If for some reason you cant get your hive queen right (I'm convinced you will be very good at rearing a queen - but nature is nature) please let us know. I may have a spare queen you can have or if not mine I'm sure one of us will be able to help you out. I feel part of you community by proxy and hate the thought of you having problems.

 

[kazmcc]

Thank you so much JS That is so sweet. I'm going to give it a go, but I've heard my other colony at my mentors place has had problems with the queen too, it was a AS we did a couple of months back. He said he'll guide me through it and if it fails, he's getting a queen for that one anyway, he'll get me another. It's really nice to know people are supporting me like this. I love this forum

 

[jezd]

Sounds like a clear case of theft and should be reported to the police.

Exactly, why 'faff' around - call the cops, its theft.

JD

 

[grahambee]

If your frames are marked i would pop over the couples allotment with your mentor and if by any chance the roof had not been put on properly (wink) you may find it

 

[kazmcc]

I just don't see how I could prove it. We didn't mark the frames as the allotment is ring fenced and locked up, and everyone who owns an allotment is part of a close community. I don't think he did it maliciously, I just think in his head it's a community hive and didn't even think i'd notice. He must think i'm as daft as him. Mistaking drones for queens, *****. * shakes head *

 

[jezd]

You dont have to prove anything, you are reporting a theft plain and simple.

Your thread calls it theft.

 

[kazmcc]

True. At least he'd be spoken to. Problem is I'm representing the school and doubt they'd go for it, but if they were mine......boy he'd be so sorry. I feel like just going for a mess about in his hive, bet he wouldn't like it one bit.

It's worth asking the school, never know.

 

[grahambee]

I don't think he did it maliciously, *

If you have got your suspicions you need to confront him head on and then KILL HIM!!!!!!

 

[Dishmop]

You should have put that chain and padlock on that you were talking about last year....

 

[drex]

Hi Kaz,

At least you have handled the situation with dignity and not come down to his level. In similar situation I try to remember that it is only my behaviour I have any control over.

I would however establish some ground rules as to opening of hives etc, with this ****.

My mate and I keep hives together, and have shared the expense 50:50, and similarly share the hives and the bees with none designated mine or his.

He lacks some confidence so I usually am expected to take the lead. However we arrange when we are going to open the hives together and if one cannot make it, we always inform the other and re- arrange a time or agree for just one of us to proceed.

 

[kazmcc]

Hi Kaz,

At least you have handled the situation with dignity and not come down to his level. In similar situation I try to remember that it is only my behaviour I have any control over.

I would however establish some ground rules as to opening of hives etc, with this ****.

My mate and I keep hives together, and have shared the expense 50:50, and similarly share the hives and the bees with none designated mine or his.

He lacks some confidence so I usually am expected to take the lead. However we arrange when we are going to open the hives together and if one cannot make it, we always inform the other and re- arrange a time or agree for just one of us to proceed.

This is how I run inspections. We have a group of people who I co ordinate and then organise. Me and a teacher are the main keepers and the others come to participate. I am always there, and nobody enters without me, as I seem to have picked up beekeeping far quicker than the others so now they kind of depend on me. Who'd have thought it?

We have had a few niggles but we just adjust to work round it, like lately, i've been keeping the groups to three, as there were too many around the hive. I didn't expect someone to come in and take something. It's just unthinking and downright rude. I could tell by his face he wasn't expecting that reaction. He sheepishly came with a blank brood frame to make up the space after.

 

[oliver90owner]

A dispassionate view from a distance.

I can see that they are the 'number one' suspects. Perhaps they need confronting. Perhaps not. There may be a situation where they have also lost a frame of bees (perhaps including their queen?) and were suspicious of your hive having their frame in it?

Certainly there is some b*****d around stealing frames - they may be clever enough to be stealing the queen, but the one frame taken would be just as noticeable as three or four missing, so that makes one wonder if whoever took it was after just a frame and not necessarily the queen. Perhaps some one taking several single frames to make a nuc of their own and hoping none of the thefts would have serious consequences - no more than 'just annoyed' beekeepers glad that their queen was still laying?

It seems bizarre that this couple would even turn up at you hive if they were the culprits.

This is simply a view from someone looking from the outside, at this very obnoxious deed. I may be wrong in my assessment, but there it is.

Hope all goes well with the replacement, but somehow think the bees temperament may well change for the worse.

Regards, RAB