Bees

[helen99]

Our bees had clustered and were doing fine .. until this week. Rialian found them all dead yesterday evening, many in mid-activity, most in the cluster. It's possible they swarmed a couple of times (there were several empty queen cells visible, although those could have been killed off by the reigning queen). There were also new bees just emerging from the cells. If the cold had waited another week or so, they may have had the numbers necessary to generate enough heat. This was disappointing - I'd kind of hoped that this particular hive would overwinter. Rialian collected the wax and honey and spent most of the night boiling down the wax and extracting the honey. The bees hadn't even touched the syrup he'd given them - there was still plenty of honey for them. We got a large chunk of wax and several large combs full of honey. Not what we were hoping for this year, though. We'd planned to let them keep that for the winter. We'll start over next year, probably at the new place, maybe look into better sheltering. When we looked at the hive, we saw that they had patched up all possible rain entrances with wax, and some of the bars were patched together. There was a lot of burr comb on the edges, but the interior combs were straight and separate - very easy to lift out. They had done a wonderful job. Unfortunately the cold snap came about a week too soon.

Comments

[stardansr.livejournal.com]

*hugs*

[rebelfilms.livejournal.com]

I saw that on Rialians update. Its so sad isnt it :(. But here too the weather is so "all over the place" that insects and plants are all getting confused.

[helen99.livejournal.com]

I think they might have gotten confused and swarmed too late in the season, not leaving enough population to keep their temperatures up. Also, we are using a hive design which is a bit different from the Langstroth hive - it's called a "top bar" hive, which was originally designed in Kenya. It is a very simple, one-layer design (brood comb and honey comb are all in the same level). Because it was designed in a tropical region and does not have multiple levels, I'm thinking the insulation is not quite as good as it is in the the Langstroths. However, top bar hives *are* used successfully in colder climates, so I think with proper placement the hive could be kept warmer (for example, placing it near a stone wall that gets plenty of sunlight and stops the wind from hitting the hive).

[jolantru.livejournal.com]

The cold can be a harsh mistress.

*hugs*

[helen99.livejournal.com]

Too bad bees can't grow winter coats! They'd look so cute, with their little fluffy golden striped coats.

[ebonhost.livejournal.com]

My condolences and hugs to you and Rialian both.

[helen99.livejournal.com]

Thanks. We will try again next year in a spot that gets more sun.

[seorgia.livejournal.com]

Oh poor bees!

[kiarrith.livejournal.com]

hugs
im sorry

[suileach.livejournal.com]

Aw. That plain sucks.

[silverbromide.livejournal.com]

Oh, so sorry to hear it. :o(

[lyssabard.livejournal.com]

*HUG*
Winter can be cruel, some years. And tricky.
Here's good wishes for next year's colony.

[helen99.livejournal.com]

Thanks :*(

I'm thinking that we'll have to look into ways to prevent swarming next year. To maintain their temperature at levels that will allow them to survive a harsh winter, they have to keep their numbers up. Several clues point to swarming as a possible culprit: In the beginning of the season they and their combs had multiplied rapidly to the point where the hive was nearly full. Ri saw a large number of bees outside the hive late in the season, and noticed some empty queen cells when he checked the hive. The frozen cluster of remaining bees was relatively small. There were no sign of mites or other diseases anywhere. They probably swarmed a bit too late in the season - maybe they'd become used to the mild winters we'd been having the past couple of years.

[ivy]

Oh, that sucks. I am so sorry.

[helen99.livejournal.com]

Thanks... looking at the plus side, if it got cold enough to kill bees, maybe it got cold enough to kill some of the mosquitoes that would have bred and hatched the coming summer. Rialian's dad's beehives survived, so it may be a matter of placement. Rialian's dad also uses conventional Langstroth hives, which may provide more insulation with all the honey supers on top and the plastic comb frames. We'll see if they survive the entire winter, but so far they're ok.

[hummingwolf.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry your bees didn't make it.