Other perspectives..

[Alex Cantacuzene]

Hello all,
As a newcomer and still being enthusiastic, those beegirls are baffling.......
I listen to them and hear many little doors clacking and clanging on some days and not on others. I suddenly see different colorations of bees and am afraid there are robbers. But do robbers bring pollen on their britches into the hive?
I do count the dropped Varroa on the inspection board that is white Formica with FGMO coated on it. I spray with FGMO with a fogger once a week right now and am starting to see lighter colored Varroa on the board. I have another hive set-up with a "For Rent sign on it next one colony and there are some of those bees looking very interested, in October? Oh well, it's all immensely interesting but leaves many questions open. If you have some answers let us know. Thanks

[Michael Bush]

>I listen to them and hear many little doors clacking and clanging on some days and not on others.

I try to pay attention and watch. Sometimes I can figure out later what the rukus was about and sometimes I can't. Sometimes it's a queen hatching or going on a mating flight or robbers or a sudden flow in the middle of a dearth.

>I suddenly see different colorations of bees and am afraid there are robbers. But do robbers bring pollen on their britches into the hive?

No, robbers don't bring in pollen. You get different colored bees because the queen mated with many different colored drones.

>I do count the dropped Varroa on the inspection board that is white Formica with FGMO coated on it. I spray with FGMO with a fogger once a week right now and am starting to see lighter colored Varroa on the board.

I notice an exposion in mite population this time of year. I suspect they reproduce at a higher rate and therfore you see younger ones.

>I have another hive set-up with a "For Rent sign on it next one colony and there are some of those bees looking very interested, in October?

They're hoping to rob it. And probably also keeping in mind where to move to in the spring. But they will probably forget by then.

[hoosierhiver]

be sure your "clacking and clanging"isn't a mouse building a nest.