Aarrggh! We’re losing a colony…

Posted by Jon on Jul 16, 2010 in Hive problems | 7 comments

Whilst our other colonies are loving the sunshine and making the most of the ample nectar flow around, one of our colonies has been causing us concern. The big, healthy colonies rumble in this weather with the bees coming and going, and the others fanning to keep the hive cool, but this little one barely manages a murmur. Watching the entrance has revealed that fewer and fewer bees are entering and leaving so we bit the bullet last night and had a look inside.

Honeybee eggs

Posted by Jon on Jul 10, 2010 in Bee behaviour, Beekeeping | 0 comments

During a hive inspection, one of the things beekeepers check for is the presence of healthy eggs as this shows that the queen is in residence and is doing her job, and the next generation of honeybees are on their way. The eggs should be laid in the centre at the bottom in adjoining cells – gaps or random laying may indicate that the queen is getting old or there are some issues in the colony.

A couple of days ago (when it was cooler!) I inspected one of the colonies I had cut out here.

Drones

Posted by Jon on Jun 11, 2010 in Bee behaviour, Beekeeping | 0 comments

Our recent hatch was full of drones – large male bees whose purpose in life is to fertilize the queen. Drones are easily visible – they are significantly larger than the workers, with a wide abdomen and big eyes – twice the size of the workers as you can see in the picture and specially adapted to recognise and follow queens in flight. They have few duties in the hive, sometimes helping out with temperature control. They often move from hive to hive being fed along the way. Interestingly, they are unable to sting as it is the reproductive organs that are modified into a sting in workers although they will buzz invaders in the hope of scaring them off. Just like workers die once they have stung, drones die once they have mated.