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Author Topic: Where the heck did they go?  (Read 2327 times)

Offline gkotlan

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Where the heck did they go?
« on: February 24, 2007, 10:01:50 am »
Had a mild day here in Northern Illinois last week so I decided to pop the top on the hives only to discover winter kill on 1 hive. I have had  winter kill before but The weird thing is that they were gone! There were a few ,maybe several hundred dead in the hive but the majority was gone and I know they were there in the fall when I extracted and even past this. What could have happened?

Offline Mici

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Re: Where the heck did they go?
« Reply #1 on: February 24, 2007, 10:09:52 am »
CCD-colony collapse disorder, check around forum for it
that's my guess

Offline buzzbee

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Re: Where the heck did they go?
« Reply #2 on: February 24, 2007, 04:32:24 pm »
Were there much stores in the hive before winter?
Did they suffer mites,
ccd seems to be mostly a migratory keeper problem although it could happen otherwise.
the bees will clean out  dead bees on nice days so they may have died and been dragged outside.
Any signs of a raccoon or skunk scratching the outside?

Offline wayne

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Re: Where the heck did they go?
« Reply #3 on: February 24, 2007, 08:00:29 pm »
Are there any stores left? CCD tends to happen when stores are still in the hive.
I was born about 100 years too early, or to late.

Offline Understudy

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Re: Where the heck did they go?
« Reply #4 on: February 24, 2007, 11:30:48 pm »
*sigh*
Before everyone jumps on the CCD boat. Let's ask some questions here.

1. How many hives do you have?

2. How long have you had the hives?

3. Do you use any chemicals with your hives?

4. Do you use foundation frames?

5. Are you near any other beekeepers?

6. Are any of the fields around you subject to spraying?

7. What kind of bees were they?

8. Do you have any damage to your hive?

9. Is there any brood in the frames?

10. Are there still honey stores?

let''s start there.

Sincerely,
Brendhan
The status is not quo. The world is a mess and I just need to rule it. Dr. Horrible

Offline gkotlan

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Re: Where the heck did they go?
« Reply #5 on: February 25, 2007, 10:44:22 am »
3 hives
5 years
if you would classify terramycin as a chemical then yes
yes foundation frames
no other beekeepers
not sure about other fields but it's common around here to spray for dandelions
Italian
No damage
Not sure about brood, I need to inspect further
And yes there is a small amount of stores.

I took a very healthy amount of honey from this hive in the fall and noticed that the hive was somewhat hot or aggressive if that helps.
Thanks for your help



Offline Understudy

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Re: Where the heck did they go?
« Reply #6 on: February 25, 2007, 11:07:50 am »
Okay, my initial suspicion is you lost your queen somewhere along the line. If you have no brood. That may be what happened. If the levels of Terramycian are to high that may also be an issue. I don't know what or how much they use on the dandelions but I wouldn't rule it out.

As for now, do not put anything from the dead hive into the good hive.

Do any of your other hives show any problems?

How close together are your hives kept?

Sincerely,
Brendhan
The status is not quo. The world is a mess and I just need to rule it. Dr. Horrible

Offline gkotlan

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Re: Where the heck did they go?
« Reply #7 on: February 25, 2007, 11:17:25 am »
Other hives are healthy and they are about 8 feet apart.
Thanks again

 

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