Scout bees tidying up! and advice please

[John M]

Ok, so I have a bait hive in place: south facing, old but good condition comb in place, lemon grass oil bought and a few drops sprinkled. Just in case, I put a poly nuc behind the greenhouse with similar comb but no oil.

I also had an old nuc (from my last colony to completely die out) between my back door and the gate. I looked at it on Saturday morning and it had dead bees in it. They were on the screen, head in the cells, emerging and capped. I really should have cleaned it and was feeling really guilty that I hadn't- a job for next weekend when I am less busy was the plan.

My wife phoned me at lunchtime to say that there was lots of activity around the nuc by the back door with dead bees both being carried away and some just being kicked out onto the patio at the entrance.

This afternoon I was on my way out of the back door when the sky turned black and I was surrounded by bees. I sent my children into the greenhouse as they too had the swarm around them. It took half an hour for the swarm to settle but it looks like they are here to stay.

Finally the questions...
Has anyone seen scouts normally do the mortician thing before a swarm arrives? ( or are you better bee keepers than i have been on this occasion)
Should I put into a full sized hive insitu? (They can't stay there long or even medium term)
Do I wait for eggs, brood or even capped brood before moving and rehousing?

I am usually happy to make such decisions but, as I have lost all my bees over the winter, it is hard to be objective.

John

 

[enrico]

Move them this evening to a new site where they are to stay and rehouse them in a full size hive with a queen excluder UNDER the bb for 48 hours.
Don't leave them any longer than that if you are moving them within three miles.
Obviously very clean bees
Try and clean them next time to stop disease spread, specially if your last bees died in there!

 

[John M]

Thanks

All other equipment is cleaned well, I just missed one! I will go out and rehive later.

 

[Arfermo]

Move them this evening to a new site where they are to stay and rehouse them in a full size hive with a queen excluder UNDER the bb for 48 hours.
Don't leave them any longer than that if you are moving them within three miles.
Obviously very clean bees
Try and clean them next time to stop disease spread, specially if your last bees died in there!

And with the entrance block stuffed with grass to ensure they don't just bugger off again before settling in to their new home.

 

[Sean.]

Another one to keep swarms, is to add a frame of brood from another known healthy hive. As they supposedly won't leave the brood.