They have gone!

[polomadh]

Three weeks ago I went to look at one of my out apiarys and found the hive to be ok, the captured swarm from last year looked like they had made it through the winter, and had half a bag of ambrosia fondant left, perhaps a little small, but certainly active enough, with occasional pollen coming in

When I went to look today they had gone! Completely no Queen cells, no pile of dead bees.... Nothing!

I thought I had seen most things over the years I have been beekeeping, but never heard of that... Has anyone else ?

 

[drstitson]

are they your frames in the hive?

theft is possible.

 

[drstitson]

please provide details of varroa burden, treatment etc etc.

 

[enrico]

Had it happen about 8 years ago. No one believed me. They were secure in my garden. I put it down to ccd which was just becoming big news but am now assured that was impossible. They were gone in a week. There on one inspection and gone on the next. No bees, no queen, food in frames. Have no idea why or where! Put it down to experience and little green men!
E

 

[Chris B]

perhaps a little small

3 weeks ago many beekeepers were reporting unseasonably large colonies. So a small colony would possibly indicate a problem. Did you check for any brood back then, and is there any left now? You didn't say but if broodless then it's the classic winter dwindle. It's not uncommon.

 

[keith pierce]

me too

I also had a lots of losses this year in the last month. Every thing was looking good in early January when I did the oxalic treatment. Then a lot of colonies started to dwindle. they made a small attempt at brood rearing ( a small patch of about 6") and then absconded from the hive leaving the brood behind. It was like as if the attempt of old bees to convert back to nurse bees was too much for them. I was in a out apiary about a month ago when I witness one of these week nucs absconding. the clipped queen was out on the ground and the bees were milling around in the air. Not a bee was left in the nuc box and when I started to inspect the nuc beside it the resident queen was been balled.
I did no treatment in the autumn as I felt that the mite levels were non existent.

 

[polomadh]

As a swarm I had oxaliced them, and then again early in the new year when they were brood less... So very low/ no varroa. They looked pretty good to me... Until yesterday !

 

[Chris B]

Did you check for any brood back then, and is there any left now?

Check the frames. Is there any brood? Especially sealed. If "yes" with the odd partially hatched worker with tongue out, then varroa. If no brood then something else, probably a queen problem.

 

[polomadh]

No, there was no brood either, just one or two dead bees... I am presuming they were out foraging when the rest of the hive decided to do a bunk!

 

[Chris B]

No your bees did not do a bunk (and brood does not go foraging for that matter). They died out because the winter bees died off without being replaced.

 

[polomadh]

If they had starved three would have been a pile of dead bees, bees in frames etc... But there was none... And as I said, a quick inspection a couple of weeks ago they looked ok, with some pollen coming in

 

[Hivemaker.]

No your bees did not do a bunk (and brood does not go foraging for that matter). They died out because the winter bees died off without being replaced.

That sounds spot on.

a quick inspection a couple of weeks ago they looked ok,

Three weeks ago I went to look at one of my out apiarys and found the hive to be ok

Your not really sure when you looked at them are you, could of been over a month ago, did they have any brood then.

 

[polomadh]

I did not do a full inspection, as it wasn't great weather..... I admit there might not have been any brood.... But that still does not explain where 4/5 frames worth of live bees went.... The, presumably now dead winter bees, were neither in the hive, or on the ground nearby

 

[BeeJayBee]

If your weather has been the same as here, it's been warm and then cold. Bees could easily have flown off foraging and then chilled and died whilst away from the hive. No new bees means the colony would seem to vanish.

 

[Chris B]

Most bees die away from the hive. There was a good nectar flow around here over the last few weeks which would certainly entice them to work and accelerate their demise.

 

[Elaine]

Birds will clear up dead bees from around the hive quite quickly - so unless you are looking at them every day - a pile of dead bees cleared out from a hive will have been removed before you see them