It's Swarming Season

Mark and I are still learning so much about bees and their behavior.  During our last three visits to the bee yard, we have come across swarms.  We were certain we were doing something wrong to cause these swarms, even though we have worked so hard to make each of our eight hives happy.  Come to find out, swarming is a very common phenomenon in the spring and early summer.  All beekeepers have to deal with it, it is a natural part of the bees’ life.  Lately, the Houston Beekeepers Club, of which we are members, has sent many emails to all members to ask for assistance in rescuing swarms around Houston.  (Click on photos to enlarge).

We think this swarm is from hive 02.
It was too high in the tree for us to capture.

We were geared up and ready to inspect our hives last Saturday and as we were walking toward hive 01 to begin working, Mark and I suddenly noticed thousands of bees circling in a very large cloud above hives 01 and 02.  We had never seen anything like it and at first, we were a little nervous of what was happening.  We watched the cloud become organized and it collectively drifted over hives 02, 03, then 04 heading eastward.  The bees gathered even closer together in a tight group and settled behind hives 05 and 06, about 25 feet up onto a branch in a large oak tree.  We didn’t know it at the time it was happening, but we had witnessed a swarm in action.  The most amazing part of the event was that it all played out in less than 5 minutes. 

During our prior two visits, Mark and I had come across our swarming bees after they had settled in the trees, but watching this swarm in action, while it relocated so quickly, was truly a learning experience for us.  Bees never fail to surprise us with their unexpected and impressive behavior.

Overall, our hives are still doing very well.  Hive 01 has great brood patterns and a good population.  We noticed eggs and larvae in this hive and we were pleased with the bees’ progress.

Hive 01 brood near the bottom of the frame
and honey near the top of the frame.
This is a good pattern.

I suspect that hive 02 is where the aforementioned swarm originated.  We could not locate our Russian queen, nor did we come across eggs and young larvae.  The population in the hive seemed fine, though.  Mark and I are going to wait and see what happens with this colony.  We are hoping that the bees will rear a new queen of their own to take over the colony.  Mark and I will make sure that the population stays high in this hive by moving frames from other highly-populated hives into hive 01.  As long as the population stays high, the bees can ward off pests, such as the small hive beetle and wax moths, and remain protected.  Once the population dips too low, these pests could take over the colony and destroy it completely, as we witnessed in 2015.

 

Hive 02 had our Russian queen.  We didn't find her during the inspection.

Hives 03, 04, 05, 06 and 07 each have plenty of eggs and a very good population.  We saw the queen in hive 07.  It's always very reassuring to see the queen in the hive.

Hive 03 has eggs.

Hive 04 has eggs and tiny larvae.

Hive 05 with medium sized larvae.

Hive 06 has a lot of brood.

Hive 07 has all sizes of larvae and plenty of brood.

Hive 08 appears to be without a queen and we are not too surprised.  This is the hive that we first encountered issues with swarming.  Even though we captured the swarm a few weeks ago, I'm pretty sure they swarmed once again. 

Mark and I think we have “laying workers” in this colony.  This is fascinating.  We have read that when there is no queen present, some of the worker bees may lay eggs.  We think we have laying workers because we have a lot of drone brood, and no worker bee brood. 

The only brood and larvae in hive 08 are drones.
Look closely at the bottom of the frame to see how
the drone brood is very large on the frame, much
larger than worker bee brood.

Hive 08 drone brood.

 If the queen were present in the hive, she would produce pheromones that prevent worker bees from laying.  With the absence of the pheromones, these worker bees lay unfertilized eggs (because worker bees never mate), and each of these eggs develop into a drone.  Drones serve a purpose in the hive, but worker bees are really what beekeepers prefer.  Workers, as their name implies, do all of the heavy lifting.  Drones primarily spend their time seeking out a queen in order to mate.  Still, having the drones in the hive isn’t a bad thing, as they may help control pests. 

Mark and I decided that we will “wait and see” if the hive 08 bees can rear a new queen on their own, as we are doing with hive 02.  If worse comes to worst, we will order new queens for both hives.