clv101
Field Bee
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2012
- Messages
- 544
- Reaction score
- 0
- Location
- Wales
- Hive Type
- 14x12
- Number of Hives
- nine 14x12
Hive surprised me today. Here's what's happened over the last few weeks, what do you think's going on.
Thu 25th April: 5 frames of brood.
Fri 3rd May: 6 frames of brood, several queen cups with eggs, a couple torn down before deciding to leave the rest and a super of foundation added (no QE).
Mon 6th May: 7 frames of brood, several queen cells with royal jelly. 3 frames (one BIAS, one BIAS with 5 charged queen cells, one stores) removed to a nuc and taken ~3 miles away.
Sat 11th May: 5 frames of brood, several charged queen cells - destroyed all of them. QE added under super which is now mostly drawn.
Mon 13th May: Cups with eggs in. 3 frames (one BIAS with Queen, 2 stores) removed to a nuc. Nuc left on apiary as per Nucleus Swarm Control Method.
Thu 16th May: New nuc is doing well, queen is laying. In the original hive there are two super frames full of brood, a few capped, mostly larva and I'm almost certain there were eggs! Light wasn't great but I'm at least 90% sure. Several charged, still open queen cells in brood box.
So what's going on? QE went on on the 11th, today (the 16th) there are 1 day old larva and I'm pretty sure also eggs. Remember, on the 13th I removed the queen from the brood box, below the QE.
It is possible that the queen laid eggs in the super up until the 11th and nipped down just before I added the QE. In which case today they would be at least 5 days old. But I'm virtually certain I saw eggs and 1 day old larva.
Is it possible that they managed to raise and mate a new queen without me noticing and without the old queen swarming or getting killed? The young, recently mated queen managed to slip through the (wire) QE and is today living in the super whilst the bees below raise new queen cells?
Any thoughts?
I'll check the super throughly this weekend if the weather is okay and find out just what's going on up there!
Thu 25th April: 5 frames of brood.
Fri 3rd May: 6 frames of brood, several queen cups with eggs, a couple torn down before deciding to leave the rest and a super of foundation added (no QE).
Mon 6th May: 7 frames of brood, several queen cells with royal jelly. 3 frames (one BIAS, one BIAS with 5 charged queen cells, one stores) removed to a nuc and taken ~3 miles away.
Sat 11th May: 5 frames of brood, several charged queen cells - destroyed all of them. QE added under super which is now mostly drawn.
Mon 13th May: Cups with eggs in. 3 frames (one BIAS with Queen, 2 stores) removed to a nuc. Nuc left on apiary as per Nucleus Swarm Control Method.
Thu 16th May: New nuc is doing well, queen is laying. In the original hive there are two super frames full of brood, a few capped, mostly larva and I'm almost certain there were eggs! Light wasn't great but I'm at least 90% sure. Several charged, still open queen cells in brood box.
So what's going on? QE went on on the 11th, today (the 16th) there are 1 day old larva and I'm pretty sure also eggs. Remember, on the 13th I removed the queen from the brood box, below the QE.
It is possible that the queen laid eggs in the super up until the 11th and nipped down just before I added the QE. In which case today they would be at least 5 days old. But I'm virtually certain I saw eggs and 1 day old larva.
Is it possible that they managed to raise and mate a new queen without me noticing and without the old queen swarming or getting killed? The young, recently mated queen managed to slip through the (wire) QE and is today living in the super whilst the bees below raise new queen cells?
Any thoughts?
I'll check the super throughly this weekend if the weather is okay and find out just what's going on up there!
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