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Author Topic: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection  (Read 5471 times)

Offline wtiger

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uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« on: May 28, 2007, 06:43:52 pm »
I did another inspection today and after I was done I sat dawn and watched the hives for a bit.  While I was sitting there I saw 2 bees crawling along the ground and decided to let them crawl on my finger so I could check them out.  To my dismay they were k-winged.  These hives were installed just about 3 weeks ago from packages and I wasn't expecting for varroa to rear it's ugly head so soon.  Now I'm trying to figure out what the best treatment would be.  Sucrocide seems like a descent alternative or maybe sugar shakes, but I'm not really sure.  I would like to avoid putting and harsh chemicals into my hives if possible and I'm trying to regress one of the hives to small cell to see what happens, but It would seem that I need to do something fairly soon so the mites don't trash my dreams of honey before my hives ever really get off the ground.  Anyone have any suggestions or thoughts that would be helpfull?

Offline Understudy

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #1 on: May 28, 2007, 07:00:03 pm »
2 bees is not a big deal. If you are concerned do a sugar shake.

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Offline Michael Bush

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #2 on: May 28, 2007, 07:24:55 pm »
2 K wing bees would not worry me.  But if there are a lot that would be Tracheal mites, not Varroa, and I'd get a new queen.  But the recommended treatment is menthol, which I've never used.
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Offline wtiger

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #3 on: May 28, 2007, 09:29:14 pm »
ok thanks.  I'll keep a close eye on them.  I was just really surprised to see them.  Especially since the first brood shouldn't hatch out for a few more days.

Offline Brian D. Bray

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #4 on: May 28, 2007, 11:24:17 pm »
Mint contains menthol, just break a few sprigs off and put it inside the hive for the bees to clean out.  Should give the T mites a thumb on the noggin.
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Offline wtiger

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #5 on: May 28, 2007, 11:29:23 pm »
I'll give that a try.

Offline abejaruco

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #6 on: May 29, 2007, 01:27:17 am »
Are you sure are K wing bees? Perhaps only old bees that can´t fly.
Your 3 weeks old hive is very young to have tracheal mite bees dying.

Offline wtiger

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #7 on: May 29, 2007, 02:01:50 am »
The wings looked fine minus the k-winged look.  Not tattered at all.

Offline abejaruco

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #8 on: May 29, 2007, 04:54:36 am »
Sorry, I was wrong. Really the tracheal mite kills the old bees, the 12 weeks old bees. The mites go into the bee trachea when this is less than 9 days old. After that need any weeks to reproduction, getting a great number and killing, suffocating, the bee.
That´s the reason (if you have understood me, sorry) the tracheal is not dangerous during the summer months because the bee lives few weeks, and it is very dangerous finishing the winter, because the bees have to live many weeks.

Offline Cindi

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #9 on: May 30, 2007, 10:55:49 am »
Mint contains menthol, just break a few sprigs off and put it inside the hive for the bees to clean out.  Should give the T mites a thumb on the noggin.

Brian, now that was a really interesting little bit of information.  Maybe that should be used at IPM for sure, eh?  Won't hurt the hive and it will keep them busy moving and breathing the mint out of the hive.  I have a huge spearmint plant going nuts by the apiary (gotta get on digging it out and putting it into a container, just too much to do), I wonder if I could make some Wriggly's spearmint gum with it using propolis!!!!  (LOL, just joking, wouldn't want propolis in my teeth).  Have a wonderful, beautiful day, love the life your livin'.  Cindi
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Offline annette

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #10 on: June 13, 2007, 10:57:25 pm »
2 K wing bees would not worry me.  But if there are a lot that would be Tracheal mites, not Varroa, and I'd get a new queen.  But the recommended treatment is menthol, which I've never used.


Michael,

Did you see my post on the general beekeeping forum???  Please read this and help me quickly.

I am suspecting k wing. Many baby bees, pale colored and small in size with no wings at all. And many, many older bees with strange looking wings. Wings are up and out above the body. Would not say they are tattered. Just at a strange angle.

This is my weak hive and have been finding many, many bees on the ground and last night was the worst when I saw so many bees walking around aimlessly and looking sick.

Please help me.

Annette

Offline Michael Bush

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #11 on: June 13, 2007, 11:11:58 pm »
>I am suspecting k wing. Many baby bees, pale colored

Baby bees are always pale colored.

> and small in size

And small in size.

> with no wings at all.

That would be from Deformed Wing Virus (DWV) which is caused by Varroa.

> And many, many older bees with strange looking wings. Wings are up and out above the body. Would not say they are tattered. Just at a strange angle.

That would be "K" wing and caused by Tracheal mites.

>This is my weak hive and have been finding many, many bees on the ground and last night was the worst when I saw so many bees walking around aimlessly and looking sick.

That would be a typical symptom of tracheal mites.

At this point you will probably lose them.  A lot of DWV is a sign you're probably over the edge already and now you also appear to have Tracheal mites.

If you want to take REALLY drastic measures you can remove all the brood and freeze it to kill the Varroa mites.  Treat them with menthol to kill the tracheal mites.  Treat them with Oxalic acid vapor to kill the Varroa mites on the bees.  Buy a new queen that is hopefully resistant to tracheal mites and hope they survive.  But from your description, they probably won't.
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Offline Cindi

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #12 on: June 14, 2007, 10:44:33 am »
Annette.  I am sorry to say this, but I really think that Michael is telling you the right stuff.  This hive is probably not going to make it.  It is sad, but you do have to face the facts.  Do as he tells you.

I lost 10 colonies last year to issues with the varroa mite (and swarming, which left weaker hives that could not fight off the varroa).  It saddened me deeply, but I learned some very valuable lessons from that.  I wound up at the end of the season last year with 2 colonies, 1 which overwintered and is a blasting, going concern now!!!!  I babied it through this winter using a terrarium heater and man did it pay off.  This hive is out of control.  I have made a nuc with it and yesterday I took two frames of its brood and three shakes of bees to strengthen the weak hive that lost so much of its population to the poisoning from the ant bait.  It is still booming with bees and still more bees to come, as it had many more frames of capped brood.  At the beginning of winter last year, I honestly did have little hope for this poor little colony, 1 left out of 11.  Have a wonderful day, keep your chin up.  Cindi
There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service

Offline annette

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Re: uh oh found 2 k winged bees after inspection
« Reply #13 on: June 14, 2007, 10:26:59 pm »
Annette.  I am sorry to say this, but I really think that Michael is telling you the right stuff.  This hive is probably not going to make it.  It is sad, but you do have to face the facts.  Do as he tells you.

I lost 10 colonies last year to issues with the varroa mite (and swarming, which left weaker hives that could not fight off the varroa).  It saddened me deeply, but I learned some very valuable lessons from that.  I wound up at the end of the season last year with 2 colonies, 1 which overwintered and is a blasting, going concern now!!!!  I babied it through this winter using a terrarium heater and man did it pay off.  This hive is out of control.  I have made a nuc with it and yesterday I took two frames of its brood and three shakes of bees to strengthen the weak hive that lost so much of its population to the poisoning from the ant bait.  It is still booming with bees and still more bees to come, as it had many more frames of capped brood.  At the beginning of winter last year, I honestly did have little hope for this poor little colony, 1 left out of 11.  Have a wonderful day, keep your chin up.  Cindi


Thank you Cindy,  The hive is dying fast now and I just have to deal with my emotions now.

Will stay in touch
Annette