What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Erichalfbee]

If she’s somehow gone AWOL, why would they not have built EQCs? She’s definitely not there and brood looks like she’s been missing for a while and I think I’ve been very thorough in checking for QCs. I’m baffled as to what has happened.

when did you last see the queen and did you shake all the frames clear of bees to look for queen cells?

 

[user 819]

Rain due hear tomorrow and forecast light but fairly persistent for the next 8 days, precipitation is forecast 50 - 91%.
So decided to look at three big colonies a day earlier.
All behaved perfectly.
I knew one had a VQ emerge on 28 or 29 May, saw some eggs and v ,young Larvae today on three frames then spotted her a real beauty ambling about.
They have just about capped one super of stores so clearer on to remove to morrow, another super & BB not ready yet to remove both partly being capped.

Colony next door is on double BB I was going to reduce the QC's down to one, removed other EQC's drawn from older larvae and left one of the very nice dimpled cells now at day 14 on it's frame to the lower BB. Was going to remove day 14 #2 cell but decided to harness it and moved it and the other BB to the top of the colony over a modified crown board with hinged entrance. Like a few on here I suspect a few of us have modded CB's from forward thinking and a compromise between a full Snelgrove one.

Third colony is the diy PIR long hive lots of brood and honey on the peripheral of frames but no honey only frames. Once the top Q in the second colony is mated may partition the LH and insert her in one half.

 

[user 819]

If she’s somehow gone AWOL, why would they not have built EQCs? She’s definitely not there and brood looks like she’s been missing for a while and I think I’ve been very thorough in checking for QCs. I’m baffled as to what has happened.

Give us some better time lines/dates as to when, what & why.

If clipped likely if swarmed either lost or clustered under the floor.
If swarmed you would have QC's unless they hid one so well that it was missed (been there and had it occur to me), so likely a VQ is in residence.
My recent VQ in a big hive I knew was there as for me the vacated cell was evident as well as the colony demeanour so calm. Once mated and laying she will easily be spotted where the brood is.

Bung a frame of eggs/newly hatched larvae in to confirm one way to the other, one suspects they are QR.

 

[The Poot]

Inspection day

Hive that swarmed -new queen laying(bluebell)

What was left from the swarm- new queen laying (blossom)

Hive we split then consequently replaced old queen with a bought queen as they tried to get rid of her last year - queen laying (Rosie)

Replaced chalkbrood queen with bought queen which disappeared and replaced by breeder unclipped today -Daisy
Things looking up, just afraid to say as this could change by the next inspection . Boiling in the beesuit but a pleasure in this gorgeous weather.

That’s good news - nice one

 

[Moobee]

when did you last see the queen and did you shake all the frames clear of bees to look for queen cells?

I last saw her majesty two weeks ago. She’s always been quite elusive and that week I couldn’t inspect at my usual time and there were a lot of bees in the boxes. I shake off the brood frames to make sure no QCs. There were only half a dozen play cups with no eggs according to my notes.

 

[Swarm]

I have a colony with only sealed and older larvae, I found them like that on Monday. I decided to have a look for the queen on Tuesday with no luck, she is not marked but I normally spot her easy enough. The bees were way too content to be queenless so I'll have another look over the weekend.

 

[Moobee]

Confession time……. So it appears, despite me thinking I’d been really thorough and cautious when I transferred a nice frame of capped brood from my hive into the nuc (on 7th June)… the queen I thought was safely on another frame, decided to hitch a ride. The reason I know it’s her is I found a photo from a week earlier where part of her mark had rubbed off and she looks like she has a bullseye on her back.
So the nuc bees probably killed the introduced queen as there was already a nice queen there
So I reached my mentor and I am now essentially reuniting the queen with her original hive (newspaper method).
Every day is definitely a learning day with bees. Note to self, if attempting this again, properly secure the queen in a catcher so you know exactly where she is!

 

[North End Bees]

Every day is definitely a learning day with bees. Note to self, if attempting this again, properly secure the queen in a catcher so you know exactly where she is!

Definitely every day is a learning day. And you never stop learning!

Re the Queen catcher, if you're talking about the clip type, I know a couple of people who've cut the queen in half with one of those!
Easy enough to just put her with the frame she's on into a spare empty nuc box while you do any manipulations.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Definitely every day is a learning day. And you never stop learning!

Easy enough to just put her with the frame she's on into a spare empty nuc box while you do any manipulations.

A good tip.
I do that if I’m doing anything thorough

 

[Boston Bees]

Easy enough to just put her with the frame she's on into a spare empty nuc box while you do any manipulations.

I do this during every inspection, if I see her. If I then go on to find queen cells (or some other unforeseen issue) , knowing exactly where the queen is is priceless.

 

[user 819]

If transferring frames to another colony, I always shake the bees off and double check it. One should never assume.

 

[GuyNir]

2 x F1 Buckfast Q’s from Murray McGregor installed ~10 days ago are now accepted and laying (no sealed brood yet though). Excited to see how they perform.

 

[Moobee]

Definitely every day is a learning day. And you never stop learning!

Re the Queen catcher, if you're talking about the clip type, I know a couple of people who've cut the queen in half with one of those!
Easy enough to just put her with the frame she's on into a spare empty nuc box while you do any manipulations.

Don’t have one of those, I use a one handed catcher with a sponge plunger or a crown of thorns but I’m always worried I might impale her on the comb.

 

[Swarm]

First of this latest batch of black queens emerged today so run in early this morning.

 

[E&MBees]

Completed an AS on one of my colonies that had made swarm preps since Sunday’s inspection. So glad I’m doing 5 day inspections. They would have been gone by the weekend.

 

[StephenT]

Inspected a hive we put on double brood and a third super about 10 days ago. New Queen emerged about the end of April after they swarmed and we managed to spot and mark her amongst a packed hive. A couple of charged queen cups on one frame that we’ll need to check again shortly. Very runny bees though, spilling out over the top of the brood box and generally dashing around all over the place, unlike the other hives. Is this generally a reason for requeening?

 

[E&MBees]

Inspected a hive we put on double brood and a third super about 10 days ago. New Queen emerged about the end of April after they swarmed and we managed to spot and mark her amongst a packed hive. A couple of charged queen cups on one frame that we’ll need to check again shortly. Very runny bees though, spilling out over the top of the brood box and generally dashing around all over the place, unlike the other hives. Is this generally a reason for requeening?

The bees I split today barely moved on the frames despite the need to check each frame carefully for queen cells. Didn’t need any smoke either. It is easier when they are calm. Could you requeen using eggs from another of your colonies?

 

[user 819]

. Very runny bees though, spilling out over the top of the brood box and generally dashing around all over the place, unlike the other hives. Is this generally a reason for requeening?

Certainly yes as it makes opening and inspecting harder.

 

[StephenT]

The bees I split today barely moved on the frames despite the need to check each frame carefully for queen cells. Didn’t need any smoke either. It is easier when they are calm. Could you requeen using eggs from another of your colonies?

Our other hives are a nice and calm. Have a nuc from a split with a calm and prolific blue Buckfast and so could despatch my runny queen and merge. Need to get back down to 3 hives max.

 

[stechad]

hmmm as if dealing with 2 swarms from my own colonies and splitting numerous times wasn't enough, today I come home to find a swarm from someone else's apiary had decided to take up residence in my stack of empty supers and brood boxes, they had been knocked leaving a small entrance gap.