Thanks everyone. My issue is I live a long way form anywhere (nearest town is 35km away) so getting someone to drop in for a look over isn’t really an option.
I did check some sunken cells yesterday and nothing nasty in them. I also check for mummies almost daily and have seen none. I have ordered some beetle traps - I was hoping my remoteness and the low humidity here would mean I would be hard to find for the little buggers, seems not.
I shall be changing out those frames next season - I too would have thought that the NUC would have been “fresh” but as things were sealed up when I got there and it’s an 8 hour round trip if I needed to replace anything, it is what it is shrug
Yet another brilliant discussion thread. EXACTLY showing the potential of this forum with open, honest and kind feedback from the brains of the experienced.
Right from the initial enquiry and the willingness of many to share knowledge - I thank you.
Allison,
Most likely your bees are fine. When you have a chance, try to find where some brood has hatched out. The queen is usually quick to re-lay eggs in these areas. This is one of my frames where bees are hatching from the middle of the frame on out. That is how the frames usually get laid out, the queen starts from the middle of the frame and circles around increasing her diameter as she goes.
Best of luck.
