I was over at a friend's of mine yesterday evening/last night. I've been knowing this gentleman since I was a kid. He's in his 80's now. Love that man, he's a gentle soul and smart as a whip. Of course we were talking bees. He's been keeping bees for around 8 years. Shared a lot of "hands on" stuff with me.
I knew he was having problems with SHB so I took him a 10 frame SHB oil trap that was sent to me (I have 8 frame). I'm trying to offer my back for exchange of "hands on" experience. He made a comment that concerned me. He said, "I don't know what's wrong with my bees. Seems like they just don't have no energy." I offered to suit up and help him do a hive inspection. In addition I was offering to take pictures of each frame and put them on his computer. He seem interested in the pictures but was wary of his computer skills. He also pointed out that they were somewhat aggressive. Meaning, if you go out there you get stung at least once or twice.
With this vague info about his bees, do you have any thoughts about what might ail them? Something I should be looking for? I have a few ideas of my own but I wanted to pick your brains.
He was laughing. He said after he had his hives a year he was crowned the resident expert. Folks was asking him questions he's never heard of before.