So I went to check on the ladies today and saw this (see vid below). It was pretty chaotic at the door and everyone was buzzing much louder than normal. Are the “loitering” bees hanging out at the entrance robbers waiting for a chance to dive in and steal the goods??
A little more background: nuc was installed 6 days ago. Nights are still chilly (~45 F / 7C) so I’ve kept the entrance reducer on for heat as well as to help them defend. Wild Blackberries are going crazy right now and they’ve been bringing back loads of pollen. Thanks!
My laptop is not able to access the video. If wild blackberries are going crazy and the bees are bringing in loads of pollen, I doubt if there is any robbing activity. To my mind robbing mainly occurs during dearths.
One thing to observe is bees doing orientation flights. Every bee in the colony has to do them at some point in their life. A lot happens early in the afternoon as a general rule. Sometimes they need to visit the bathroom outside the hive.
Thank you for the insight! I guess even bees have to deal with long lines at the bathroom It was really the sound of the hive that had me a little worried. The buzz would grow super loud and then subside so in my head all I could think was that there was some kind of “rumble in the 'combs” going on in there.
I plan on doing my 1st inspection early next week when the temp range will be 50-70F so if the population is booming, my thought was to remove the entrance reducer. I know there are differing opinions on this so I’m still on the fence. I want them to be able to bring in their groceries as quickly and efficiently as possible while the gettin is good but today kinda freaked me out a little so I’m now leaning towards keeping the door small until the summer heat hits. (sorry… just thinking out loud)
You’re welcome Cat. I’m not really a fan of that entrance reducer. It’s fine for a small colony while it’s building, but doesn’t allow for a gradual buildup of a colony. A respected American beekeeper (Tom Seeley) has done a lot of research and settled I believe on 15 sq.cm. as the ideal size entrance for a strong colony. With that in mind, you can allow 15 sq.cm for a strong colony, starting small and gradually build up as the colony grows. In inches: that’s 3/8ths of an inch by 6 inches.
You can improve the entrance by allowing 2 small entrances, one on each side. The purpose of that strategy is to allow the bees to draw air in on one side & expel it on the other. That’s the way I set my entrances up when making new bottom boards.
In relation to summer heat: Keep the entrance relative to the size of the colony, and no more, with no added ventilation. The bees will air con the hive via the entrance. Added ventilation will only work against them.
Hi @catgo I agree with Jeff, I doubt it’s robbing and would add that drones have a louder, more urgent-sounding buzz. They return to the hive from their mating flights around 4pm, so if you took this video at that time you’d have caught that extra spike in activity and sound.
I also agree on Jeff’s points about your reducer, and how we can facilitate the bees’ own habits of ventilation and temperature stability. When I used those types of bottom boards I would just put a 5” or so strip of wood right in the middle, leaving the two openings on either side that Jeff mentioned. It was amazing to watch the bees stationed outside these, fanning in on one side and out the other! And I always left the screened bottom blocked/closed to minimize drafts.
But I disliked how the screened bottoms collected debris and seemed to attract ants. I soon ditched them in favor of plywood boards the length and width of a bee box, with the corners cut off one end to create two downward-facing openings on either side measuring about 2-3 square inches. I also use slatted racks, on top of the bottom boards and under the brood box. These provide a buffer zone for drafts and a place for bees to hang out and defend easily.
I have the reducer plate installed too and this is how it always seems to look on mine and they are going gangbusters. Some of that I think is just being on guard. If they were under threat they seem to pull back inside the hive and line up for a fight.
It was really the sound of the hive that had me a little worried. The buzz would grow super loud and then subside so in my head all I could think was that there was some kind of “rumble in the 'combs” going on in there.