Bees clustered at the entrance of hive

How many frames was this split?

You likely added the super way too early, especially if you’re local mentor was recommending a double brood setup. To quote an often posted recommendation by @Dawn_SD:

This sounds like bearding and is very normal on hot and humid days.

They may not have been able to carry away their normal dead and occasional larva or pupa because of the wet weather so they are likely just catching up. A full colony will lose hundred if not thousands of bees a day to normal life expectancy.

When fall comes around you will notice many weak, dying, or dead drones being ejected from the hive. Over winter you will see scattered dead bees in front of the hive and across the snow (which I am assuming you get your fair share of). Scattered dead bees in the winter is a good sign of life inside the colony.

There’s no right and wrong direction, as long as you turn it past straight up or straight down. Use the upper slot to reset the frames and lower slot to harvest.

However, as your bees are still building your second brood box, you should strongly consider removing the super, likely until next spring.

1 Like