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Thread: Irish Amm

  1. #11
    Senior Member Jon's Avatar
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    If you find yourself making excuses for not checking/not opening a certain hive because of regular poor behaviour the queen should definitely be nipped.
    Beekeeping should be an enjoyable experience.
    It is a good idea to make up a couple of extra nucs and then requeening can be done by combining the nuc with the aggressive colony after removal of its queen.

  2. #12
    Senior Member HJBee's Avatar
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    So I have invested in an Irish AMM. She arrived yesterday, and was popped in the hive. Visited tonight to check all is well as she is being fed by the existing workers in the Nuc through the cage - a good sign. Back in 2 days to make sure she has got out or if I need to remove some of the fondant to help her.

  3. #13
    Senior Member Jon's Avatar
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    That fondant is pretty soft so they should have no problem releasing her.
    The double entry cages allow the workers to mingle with the queen inside the cage before she gets out into the hive.

  4. #14
    Senior Member HJBee's Avatar
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    I had a wee poke at the fondant when I took the tape off tonight, was quite soft. My only concern is a few of the attendants seemed to have expired.

  5. #15
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    If that was my setup I'd be a little concerned about all that soft fondant being in the cage, and the possibility of a sticky ball of bees developing ...

    I much prefer now to remove the girls from their travelling cage asap, and put 'em in a clean purpose-made introduction cage, in order to do a direct release after a few days - so I can witness first-hand how the Q is being received.

    Not my idea - got it from Larry Connor. I'm now 100% sold on that idea for the introduction of valuable queens.

    LJ

  6. #16
    Senior Member Jon's Avatar
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    That's ok as long as you are confident you can get the queen back in a cage quickly if the workers show aggressive behaviour towards her.
    I have rescued 3 queens this year which I found being balled at the entrance to various apideas. Presumably they flew and returned to the wrong one.
    On close examination, every one of them proved to have a defect such as part of a leg missing or a foot missing. The feet in particular get damaged easily as the bees bite and pull while she is being balled. The wings are often quite badly damaged as well.

  7. #17
    Senior Member HJBee's Avatar
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    I don't have that confidence! I will be back to see her in the morning, and will dig out the rest of the fondant and watch to see her hopefully exit if she hadn't already.

  8. #18
    Senior Member Jon's Avatar
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    Don't rush things. If she is ok in the cage and the bees are chewing through the fondant just leave them to it. That type of cage is designed to allow the workers to mingle with the queen in the cage before she enters the hive. The bees chew through the short plug first and can enter the cage. Don't worry about dead workers in the cage. It is the workers outside the cage who are feeding the queen now.

  9. #19
    Senior Member busybeephilip's Avatar
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    Not intending to rock anyones boat but the usual method is to remove the attendants before trying to introduce the queen. The amount of fondant does seem to be excessive but maybe its just cos the picture is magnified. Is the cage being hung with the fondant at the top? the heat of the hive might melt the fondant and it will run down and smother the bees (this might be happening now?), IMO I would place the cage with the fondant at the bottom or have the cage horizontal.
    Phil

  10. #20
    Senior Member busybeephilip's Avatar
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    Also, the cage is better located at the top bar of the middle of the centre frame, from the picture your cage appears to be hung fondant at the top, at the bottom of a frame and at the side - of course i could be wrong and the cage has just been put there for the picture to be taken but something to consider

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