'Swarming' by instalments ...

[Little_John]

I've got so many colonies now that I'm nearly out of boxes, and have taken to using old bait boxes and even car tyres as stands.

I forgot to plug-up the holes in one particular bait box, and over the last few days something very odd has taken place. A 'swarm' (if you can still call it that) has moved into this box - only they haven't arrived in the usual cloud of bees around midday(ish) - these have arrived by 'instalments' of tens and twenties right throughout the day.

At first I thought they were scouts, and that the main swarm would arrive in due course - only it hasn't. They're Italian bees, and although I haven't looked inside the box yet, they look to be all mature bees. They're certainly behaving as such: aggressive defending of the entrance as soon as they arrived, plenty of fighting on the landing board that I quickly rigged up, and many were off foraging immediately after their arrival. They're exceptionally well motivated, being up and out at 6 a.m. and still working hard at 8 p.m. Currently they're bringing loads of pollen in - only I'd like to know where they're putting it, as there ain't any combs in that box - only bare Delon frames.

Very strange business. I'm wondering if they've been separated from their parent colony by someone moving a hive during the day ? Anyway, I'll poke my head in and have a looksee on Monday.

LJ

[chris]

Interesting. I had a very similar thing happen last month. The bait hive near my garage,so I could keep an eye on it all day.Even holes between the badly fitting bits of wood!! Anyway, I just assumed there were more and more scouts.Next day, activity as soon as the sun was on the hive. A build up until I thought that the behaviour was that of a colony in residence. Pollen starting to come in, but I hadn't seen the swarm arrive. The next morning I had to leave early, so couldn't move the bait box. When I got back, the bees were very active and pollen was still coming in.When it got dark, I went to close up the hive ready for moving it in the morning. No more bees.And, never another came back.

[Little_John]

Extraordinary ...

I was using this bait box as a stand for a nuc, and like yourself I had full view of it from my workshop - I was keeping an eye on the nuc as it's a tad on the weak side, and thus easy prey for robbers. I tried an anti-robbing screen, but it only confused the residents ...

So - I spotted the first bees checking out the bait box, and like yourself thought they were simply scouts. As the numbers began to build, I decided to separate the nuc and the bait box by a couple of feet, as I expected a full swarm to arrive in due course and feared that the nuc would be swamped with robbing in the confusion.

But unlike normal scout behaviour, these girls found the bait box entrances and immediately decided that this was 'home' - some became over-excited and began running every which way, and others set up station and started fanning to attract 'the swarm' (or so I thought). As the numbers swelled to around 100 plus, they formed tight clusters around the entrances (2 x 22mm holes) and were quite clearly 'staking their claim'.

Having moved the nuc away, a couple of my girls (noticeable as they are black, and the incomers Italian) lost their bearings and tried to enter the bait box. They were instantly mobbed and killed. Very aggressive.

Today I was treated to a display by a couple of hundred - so probably all of them - dancing in front of the hive just as if it was an established colony. Which it certainly ain't. I've never seen such strange behaviour before. I think a psychiatrist would describe this as being 'in denial'.

I'm inspecting other hives tomorrow, so while I'm togged-up I'll take a quick peek inside and see what's going on.

LJ

[chris]

I've forgotten it, but what's the case where bees bring in pollen even though not all is right with the queen and her laying?

[Adam]

I have some nasty supers by my shed (not mine) which were robbed out by wasps last year after they managed to get in. Bees have been hanging about it for a few weeks and I assumed it was one of my colonies that was sniffing around. I was planning to remove the supers to their rightful owner this weekend and get them out of the way. However, sometime last week the bees must have arrived; a fair sized swarm by the looks of it. And I don't think they're mine.
I didn't see the bees bringing in any pollen before-hand though.

[prakel]

Not at all suggesting that the following link is truly relevant to honey bees let alone this particular phenomena that's being discussed but it struck a chord when I just read it...

Why 'Whispers' Among Bees Sometimes Evolve Into 'Shouts'

http://phys.org/news/2014-07-bees-evolve-shouts.html

[Little_John]

Ok - on inspection there was 'nothing' to see: no comb, except a couple of half-hearted attempts about an inch and a half in diameter (not very much to show for 3 days residence ...). Still plenty of 'showing-off' outside the box, but almost zero activity inside. And of course, no queen - so that's one job less to do.

I've given them a couple of empty drawn combs, and a frame of sealed brood to provide them with nurses for the 'test frame' I'll be giving them in a week's time - in order to change the colour of their jerseys, as this is now an Italian-free zone


BTW - just in case it's of interest to anyone, here's my 'really useful two-frame box' - which I finished today. It's not an original idea - which came from http://theapiarist.org/a-really-useful-box/ .
My claim to fame, as it were, is a much improved method of providing stability to an otherwise unstable footprint. Mine also has a removable false floor to allow either DNx or SNx frames to be installed, as I particularly want to try experimenting with a 2 x SN4 mating-nuc format.







Sorry the photos are crappy - the sunlight was very strong and low in the sky.

LJ

[gavin]

Thread of the Week, I reckon. Thanks, LJ. I have seen bees 'hanging out' like this at possible new homes yet having to go with the majority vote to another place (or having their plans scuppered by an interfering beekeeper elsewhere). But not for several years.

G.

[Little_John]

Thought a picture of these bees (cr@p camera, sorry) might be of interest ...

To explain - I've settled on using 22mm holes (standard wine cork size) for all my hives. 5 such holes on full-size hives; 4 on Warre-sized Russian 'Alpine' hives; 3 on bait boxes; and 2 on NUCs - so roughly in proportion to the size of box.

I find this to be an easy and flexible system to use - so if I want to make a split brood box (say), I can simply fit a divider then drill two 22mm holes in each side of the brood box, fitting a flat sheet of plywood as a floor. Whack corks in all the holes, and it reverts to being a normal brood box. Simples.

Now on every single occupied box I have (and we're talking well into double figures) the guards set up their station just inside each hole - so from outside the box, each hole appears fully 'open' - permitting ventilation, and easy access for returning foragers. It's only if something goes amiss do the guards come out of the box and chase robbers away or whatever. I have always taken this to be normal bee behaviour.

Now in contrast, from about 30 mins after their first arrival onwards, these bees have set-up their guards half-in, half-out of each hole, effectively blocking it - thus any bees wanting to leave or enter has to 'run the gauntlet' of this tight cluster of bees. This scenerio has been set-up early each morning and lasts throughout the day until nightfall. I've just checked, and they're doing exactly the same this morning. They really are 'staking their claim' ! Curious.



Oh - and just in case anyone has wondered what a Russian 'Delon' frame is - I've included a shot of a partly pre-drawn example - you can see how small they are when mounted on a 'National Brood' stand. 8 frames per box - with as many boxes as required - a 'chimney-stack' of 8 or 10 boxes not being unusual.



LJ