Welcome, Guest

Author Topic: bees flying at night  (Read 27404 times)

Offline Jwhatman

  • New Bee
  • *
  • Posts: 17
  • Gender: Female
bees flying at night
« on: January 16, 2013, 07:29:41 pm »
I haven't gotten my hive set up or my bees yet, so I'm guessing they are feral bees.  For the past few night I have found bees on my open patio after dark.  They are either flying into the light or just flying around.  Is this normal?  We have had a week of nice weather.  Days in the high 70's and nights in the 60's.  I can't tell what type of bee it is, but I don't see any pollen sacks, even though something is blooming.  I'm just curious.

Joyce

Offline AllenF

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 8192
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #1 on: January 16, 2013, 09:03:54 pm »
Honey bees don't fly in the dark, but they will fly to a light.  Floodlight, flashlight, truck head lights, all will attract the bees if you are working with them. 

Offline VolunteerK9

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 1647
  • Gender: Male
  • Gamecock fan in UT land.
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #2 on: January 16, 2013, 09:23:36 pm »
And they crawl up if you happen to bee working them in the dark. So make sure you're ankles are wrapped up. (Late night storm that knocked some hives over is how I figured out that piece of trivia)

Offline BlueBee

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 4587
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #3 on: January 16, 2013, 09:27:52 pm »
Yep, the guys are right.  The bees will crawl and a few will fly toward a light source at night.  It’s a one way trip.  Be careful poking around a hive with a white flashlight.  Use red light instead. 

Offline Jwhatman

  • New Bee
  • *
  • Posts: 17
  • Gender: Female
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #4 on: January 16, 2013, 09:35:13 pm »
My husband and I have been just sitting on our patio, enjoying the beautiful weather when the bees have been showing up.  I realize they are attracted to light since they keep buzzing around it.  I have found several dead on my patio.  I just wonder if I have a feral hive somewhere, or someone else's bees are taking a late night jaunt.  Just curious since everything I have read indicates that bees do not fly at night unless messed around with.

Offline BlueBee

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 4587
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #5 on: January 16, 2013, 09:38:49 pm »
My guess is you have a feral hive very close by.  I only see my bees flying toward a light if the light is within 10 to 20 feet of the hive.  Further than that, and I figure they think it's a star or the moon and ignore it.  Get out your books on bee lining  ;)

Offline hardwood

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 3482
  • Gender: Male
  • Alysian Apiaries youtube.com/MrBeedude
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #6 on: January 16, 2013, 10:11:34 pm »
If you can capture a few of them at night you can bee line with them the next day (when it's light out).

Beelining.wmv

Scott
"In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the person's becoming in every facet an American, and nothing but an American...There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag...We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language...And we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people."

Theodore Roosevelt 1907

Offline tefer2

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 2318
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #7 on: January 16, 2013, 10:20:49 pm »
Those bees may live in your house or an out building. :shock: Have a look around in the Daytime.

Offline 10framer

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 1701
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #8 on: January 17, 2013, 12:29:49 am »
Those bees may live in your house or an out building. :shock: Have a look around in the Daytime.

that was my first thought.  check your overhangs the next warm sunny day you have.  
someone mentioned that the light source has to be close and i agree with that too.  a lot of removals i've done that's exactly how the homeowner figured out there were bees in their house.
















Offline JackM

  • Field Bee
  • ***
  • Posts: 708
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #9 on: January 17, 2013, 08:50:02 am »
You may also want to check to see if these fit in the Zombee category.  They may have that parasite that is being researched.  https://www.zombeewatch.org/
Jack of all trades
Master of none.

Offline Jwhatman

  • New Bee
  • *
  • Posts: 17
  • Gender: Female
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #10 on: January 17, 2013, 11:46:01 am »
First I have heard of bee lining,so I had to do a little research.  I learn something new about these amazing insects daily.  I am very intrigued about bee lining.  I have checked around my property and nothing obvious in my yard, but maybe a neighbors.  I have several houses around me that are vacant,one owner has been away staying with family,she's 94 years old.  The other 2 neighbors only use their house a few times a year.  I'll have a look around their properties to see if there is any hives.  Today is supposed to be warm, then a cold front blows in. 

Offline lazy shooter

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 68
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #11 on: January 17, 2013, 12:22:58 pm »
I have read that the early settlers would see bees at a watering place and watch them fly away.  Then walk to the spot where they lost sight of the bee and look for another bee following the same flight path.  By doing this long enough, they sometimes found the bee hive.  These accounts of bee lining were in novels, so the fiction element is always in the back of one's mind. 

Both of my apiaries are within one  hundred yards of a stock pond, and I can watch the bees leave the watering hole.  They fly a strait line toward the apiaries.  They are efficient creatures and don't waste any energy.  As a sidebar, the bees don't go the water, they suck moisture out of the wet mud a foot or so from the water's edge.

Offline Finski

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 3928
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #12 on: January 17, 2013, 12:27:09 pm »
I have read that the early settlers would see bees at a watering place and watch them fly away. 

If you mean in America, honeybees were not in America before settlers.

.
.
Language barrier NOT included

Offline 10framer

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 1701
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #13 on: January 17, 2013, 12:33:26 pm »
I have read that the early settlers would see bees at a watering place and watch them fly away. 

If you mean in America, honeybees were not in America before settlers.

.
it took hundreds of years to span the continent.  i expect the bees moved faster than the europeans.

Offline 10framer

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 1701
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #14 on: January 17, 2013, 12:40:01 pm »
I have read that the early settlers would see bees at a watering place and watch them fly away.  Then walk to the spot where they lost sight of the bee and look for another bee following the same flight path.  By doing this long enough, they sometimes found the bee hive.  These accounts of bee lining were in novels, so the fiction element is always in the back of one's mind. 

Both of my apiaries are within one  hundred yards of a stock pond, and I can watch the bees leave the watering hole.  They fly a strait line toward the apiaries.  They are efficient creatures and don't waste any energy.  As a sidebar, the bees don't go the water, they suck moisture out of the wet mud a foot or so from the water's edge.

there was a series of books written in the 60's or 70's called the "foxfire books".  they were written to keep the history of the people of the appalachian mountains way of life.
one of the books has a chapter on beekeeping and discusses beelining.  reading these books when i was maybe ten years old is how i ended up keeping bees, making my own gun powder and building a still when i was a kid.
i know this is a little off topic but i don't think beelining is fictional.  if you get a chance to read that series of books you should.

Offline edward

  • Queen Bee
  • ****
  • Posts: 1203
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #15 on: January 17, 2013, 08:41:47 pm »
Didn't the Indians call the bees white mans flies?

mvh edward  :-P

Offline AllenF

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 8192
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #16 on: January 17, 2013, 10:28:36 pm »
Bee keeping is in the second Foxfire volume.  Cool pics (from what I remember) of old bee gums.   

Offline Bees In Miami

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 169
  • Gender: Female
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #17 on: January 18, 2013, 02:34:58 am »
Jwhatman:  Where are you located?  You can update your profile so you don't show as Hopelessly Lost.  If you are planning on getting started with bees anyways, you will learn a ton from these very knowledgeable folks!!  Welcome, and hope to see you often! 

I agree with the others, you have a hive close by.  Probably closer than you think.   I lose a bee or two every evening, my guess is they are late foragers that get disoriented returning home and fly to the light.  I never seem to see bees late, but typically just after sunset, or an hour or so later.  We keep our lights dimmed until we're pretty sure the bees are settled for the night, but still lose one or two a night.   (Our closest hives are about 25 yards from the light sources)

I find the busiest time around the colonies is an hour or two before sunset when the foragers are returning.  I suggest taking your exploration walk then, and they should lead you right to the entrance.  Don't discount looking down, too, as at least down here, they are famous for setting up under workshops and sheds.  You may get lucky and not need to buy a package or Nuc this year!   X:X

Offline Finski

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 3928
  • Gender: Male
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #18 on: January 18, 2013, 06:40:43 am »
.
Bee expanding history of USA

http://www.orsba.org/htdocs/download/Honey%20Bees%20Across%20America.html

The creation of the United States can be found in the footsteps of the honey bee (Apis mellifera L.).
Brought to the east coast of North America in 1622 it would be 231 years before the honey bee reached the west coast. Disease, hostile competitors, harsh climates, and geographical barriers blocked the advance of honey bee and human alike.

"Although some claim that Tabitha ‘Grandma’ Brown, who owned and ran a school and orphanage in Forest Grove, Oregon, had a honey bee tree at the school in 1849 (Williams 1975:34) the first evidence I could find of honey bees in Oregon was the August 1, 1854 Oregon Statesman, which included a story about John Davenport of Marion county who brought home a hive of honey bees from back east. These were considered the first in the area. Unfortunately, it was later reported that this first hive of honey bees did not do well (Williams 1975:34).

 

Honey bees came to California almost simultaneously with the Oregon honey bees. There is just no support for the story that the honey bees brought to Sitka, Alaska in 1809 by Russian missionaries and traders were carried down to Fort Ross, California in 1812 (Essig 1931:265-266; Free 1982:117). Much more likely is the story told in an 1860 letter from F. G. Appleton, a San Jose apiarist, that says the first honey bees in California arrived in March 1853. There were 12 swarms purchased in Panama, which were carried across the “Isthmus and thence by water to San Francisco” (Essig 1931:268). Only one hive survived the trip and that hive was taken to San José where it produced three successful swarms that first year.
"
.
Language barrier NOT included

Offline Jim134

  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 3045
  • Gender: Male
    • Franklin County Beekeepers Association
Re: bees flying at night
« Reply #19 on: January 18, 2013, 11:01:27 am »

If you mean in America, honeybees were not in America before settlers.

 From what I have read their was no honey bees in North or South America before the from Europeon came to the Americas



         BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)
"Tell me and I'll forget,show me and I may  remember,involve me and I'll understand"
        Chinese Proverb

"The farmer is the only man in our economy who buys everything at retail, sells everything at wholesale, and pays the freight both ways."
 John F. Kennedy
Franklin County Beekeepers Association MA. http://www.franklinmabeekeepers.org/