Washboarding

[Millet]

I have never had it happen Yet, have any of you experienced folk had it happen and do you have any explanations or pictures of it happening.
Thank you

 

[ugcheleuce]

Do you have any explanations or pictures of it happening.

I've never seen it nor heard of it before you posted your question, but I suppose you know that YouTube is your friend.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxjc4tSKJFs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbwumXVTOz8

 

[Michael Palmer]

This one with Jim Tew might be good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxjc4tSKJFs

I see washboarding every year. A few years ago I took two beekeepers...Simon C and Michael Y...from the UK to my mating and cell building apiaries. The colonies in both yards were very strong and bearding in hot weather. When it is hot and humid, and the bees are bearding and idle, I often see them washboard. They were amazed, and wondered what my bees were doing, and made some videos. Both said they had never seen such a thing...nor had they seen such bearding. I wonder if that's why you all don't see washboarding...you don't get the hot humid weather and huge colonies we get?

It looks like they are using their mandibles to scrape the surfaces about the bottom entrance.

 

[Millet]

Thank you for that, i have read a small piece on the subject from a James E Tew book but i don't know how old the information is, i thought maybe they would be a more definite up to date answer.
I am glad i did have a little read of the book as i would have definitely panicked if i seen my bees doing it.

 

[B+.]

I see washboarding every year.

Do they only do it on wooden hives?

 

[Erichalfbee]

This one with Jim Tew might be good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxjc4tSKJFs

Thank you Michael; a lovely video

 

[Michael Palmer]

Do they only do it on wooden hives?

Don't know B+, as I haven't got any poly hives....well I do have one that I won in a raffle, but haven't had it stocked with bees long enough to know.

 

[Arfermo]

Most of the bees doing the "washboarding" look quite fluffy/hairy and could be the younger ones? Only asking in case it might give a clue as what is going on.

 

[bontbee]

I've only ever seen it on painted wooden hives, never on the untreated wood hives.

 

[Plenty of honey]

Bees Washboarding

Never seen it on any of my hives in France but i filmed this at Michael's Apiaries in the summer. Fascinating!! hives were very populous, with the golden rod flow just about to start. As though the bees didn't have much to do.
Excuse the clip, the quality isn't that good. Its not as good an example as the first video, but the behaviour is the same if you watch a single bee, their doing the same thing.

https://youtu.be/GvIY9is1wfE

 

[Goran]

I think I posted already somewhere on forum, but here them again.. At my place it is regular happening.

 

[Millet]

Weird weird .. no definite answers.
Surely someone has it sussed.
Come on Finman

 

[Barbarian]

I have looked at a few US videos of washboarding.

I noticed that the bees on the front of the hive faced down towards the entrance. Bees on the sloping alighting board face towards the entrance.
Bees on the vertical front of the alighting board face downwards (away from the entrance).

During washboarding the bees scrub the surface with their mouthparts. I don't know if they are collecting anything, smoothing the surface or depositing anything.

 

[beeno]

Hi all,
Mine do it on poly and painted wooden hives. Judging by the before and after they appear to be cleaning and do it quite quickly when yellow pollen have stained the hives. I guess it is a way to deter robbing. They also clean dirt off the landing boards when the hives are nice and strong.

 

[Swarm]

Goran's are applying a bright, new coat of paint.

 

[Millet]

...

 

[Hebeegeebee]

I saw washboarding this year for the first year with one of my colonies. Bees were hanging around on the landing board (A WBC in this case) for several weeks and only did they eventually return to the hive. It was with a colony that was suffering from a heavy varroa infestation (parasitic mite syndrome) with the colony collapsing in bee numbers shortly afterwards. Co-incidence?
Is this similar to bees that are suffering from viruses that hang about on the tops of frames and won't respond to smoke?

FYI, the colony was treated for varroa, replaced it's queen by supercedure and is now OK.

 

[Quis Custodiet]

Perhaps there was a connection of some sort between the varoosis and the washboarding. But as the phenomenon has been known long before the advent of varroa (in these islands), the mite infestation can only have been replicating a trigger, also provided by something else.
Has anyone encountered reference to washboarding from the time of skep beekeeping?