Too early for swarm traps?

[gwt_uk]

Well after all yesterday’s activity there’s no sign of any scouts again today....I’m guessing it’s either too cold again or they found somewhere they preferred?

they may be checking out other places but better weather coming! Keep your eyes peeled. I have had scouts checking out my bait hive for weeks and nothing yet. There were bees at mine this morning at 7am.

 

[IndiBee]

Well after all yesterday’s activity there’s no sign of any scouts again today....I’m guessing it’s either too cold again or they found somewhere they preferred?

Or they are just about to arrive. I have seen many times the traps going silent just before an arrival

 

[Erichalfbee]

Or they are just about to arrive. I have seen many times the traps going silent just before an arrival

Yes usually just a matter of minutes

 

[Newbeeneil]

Well after all yesterday’s activity there’s no sign of any scouts again today....I’m guessing it’s either too cold again or they found somewhere they preferred?

Or the the queen in the potential swarm was clipped or the beek spotted the problem and carried out an AS

 

[user 20297]

Well after all yesterday’s activity there’s no sign of any scouts again today....I’m guessing it’s either too cold again or they found somewhere they preferred?

Your lack of gain....someone else's lack of loss.
If any compensation..not a thing happening around any of my home, bait-hives. I'm looking forward to visiting the holiday cottage trap tomorow....there were a few bees around it last Sarturday.

 

[Do224]

Your lack of gain....someone else's lack of loss.
If any compensation..not a thing happening around any of my home, bait-hives. I'm looking forward to visiting the holiday cottage trap tomorow....there were a few bees around it last Sarturday.

Ooooh that’s exciting.....you’ll have to let us know what you find at the holiday home!

I was amazed how the bees found the traps yesterday. I had barely seen a single bee in the garden this year and then suddenly yesterday afternoon the traps were all getting attention. One of the traps had dozens of bees around it....

 

[Apiarisnt]

Lots of scout bees round the bait box today, despite the rain. That means tomorrow I need to go through all my hives, again, to check for QCs. The hope remains that it is someone else's colony that is thinking of swarming.

 

[Repwoc]

I put out a bait hive to try to tempt a swarm that someone had hanging from the eves of their house. On Thursday I received a text saying the bees had moved on. I haven't had a chance to retrieve my bait hive, but today I received another text saying the bees are now in the hive! I'm thinking it's likely to be a different swarm.

 

[gwt_uk]

Still plenty of scouts around my bait hive. There have been for weeks! I haven’t refreshed the lure and am pretty sure they aren’t robbing. I am beginning to think they just like hanging out there!!

 

[Do224]

Still plenty of scouts around my bait hive. There have been for weeks! I haven’t refreshed the lure and am pretty sure they aren’t robbing. I am beginning to think they just like hanging out there!!

The scouts have all disappeared from my swarm traps....so frustrating!

 

[Antipodes]

Still plenty of scouts around my bait hive. There have been for weeks! I haven’t refreshed the lure and am pretty sure they aren’t robbing. I am beginning to think they just like hanging out there!!

How many weeks is it now?

 

[gwt_uk]

How many weeks is it now?

Think I put it out mid/late April.

 

[Antipodes]

Think I put it out mid/late April.

Ok. They should be there within the next week.

 

[gwt_uk]

The scouts have all disappeared from my swarm traps....so frustrating!

Hopefully this run of better weather will bring them back.

 

[gwt_uk]

Ok. They should be there within the next week.

see attached pic that’s what they are up to this afternoon. Quite a few hanging around the entrance

 

[Antipodes]

see attached pic that’s what they are up to this afternoon. Quite a few hanging around the entrance

Yep....
Little bit of fanning from bee lower left. Within the week

 

[Loxley]

I had some weird behaviour at one of my bait hives up on the roof of the house this week. it just looked like one or two bees flying straight to the entrance and going in then staying in there for ages. None of the usual milling around the outside checking it out, they looked purposeful. Eventually I had a look yesterday (I was actually hoping to press the box into service to house a swarm that was bivouacked in a bramble patch nearby but that's another story ) only to find this : [ATTAH=full]26406[/ATTACH]

I think it's a red mason bee but I'm not 100%. I put the box back together and left her alone to her work. Not the bees I was hoping for but I am very glad to have her all the same!

 

[Do224]

My swarm traps have all been very quiet all day but the last couple of hours this one has been hotting up...quite surprised to see activity increasing as late as this. Video was taken at 8pm....midnight swarm? . Some of the bees looked like they were squabbling too.

Still no bees at the other traps though and they’re all within a short distance of each other in my garden

 

[Lincbee]

After nothing for months I’ve 3 out of 5 bait hives now full this weekend, one of which was getting no attention at all until I moved it about 100m from our field into our garden closer to the house then straight away scout bees were there and a swarm moved in early today. Not sure where they’ve all come from as none of the bait hives are near any known apiary!

 

[Erichalfbee]

After nothing for months I’ve 3 out of 5 bait hives now full this weekend, one of which was getting no attention at all until I moved it about 100m from our field into our garden closer to the house then straight away scout bees were there and a swarm moved in early today. Not sure where they’ve all come from as none of the bait hives are near any known apiary!

People have bees tucked away all over the place. Go onto Beebase and look. You might get a shock