Two things...

[ShinySideUp]

One thing I am unclear about: Left to their own devices (but with sufficient room in the hive) would every colony swarm every year?

Secondly: If the hive was disturbed in the dead of night, for example if a super was knocked off by a passing cow (or other vandal) exposing the brood box, what woud the bees do? Fly, die, abscond at first light? Just curiosity.

 

[For want of a better word]

One thing I am unclear about: Left to their own devices (but with sufficient room in the hive) would every colony swarm every year?

Secondly: If the hive was disturbed in the dead of night, for example if a super was knocked off by a passing cow (or other vandal) exposing the brood box, what woud the bees do? Fly, die, abscond at first light? Just curiosity.

Firstly .. depends on the type of bee you keep... my Amm tend to superceed, not swarm... some of the yellow bees seem to be from swarmy stock, but slowly by selection I seem to keep on top of the!

on two.. once again depends on the strain.. Carnies would from my experience become very aggressive... iron knickers and thick leather gloves job to put colony back together... Amm and their ligurian cousins tend to just put up with horizontal living.... answer is to strap hive and stand firmly together
Nos da

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Firstly .. depends on the type of bee you keep... my Amm tend to superceed, not swarm... some of the yellow bees seem to be from swarmy stock, but slowly by selection I seem to keep on top of the!

on two.. once again depends on the strain.. Carnies would from my experience become very aggressive... iron knickers and thick leather gloves job to put colony back together... Amm and their ligurian cousins tend to just put up with horizontal living.... answer is to strap hive and stand firmly together
Nos da

One of the hives in our association apiary was knocked over, possibly by a deer and found at a routine pre season visit. It was re-erected and a week later the queen was laying normally