Lost hive,don't know why . . .

[BeeMe]

Hi, I am new to beekeeping and was really happy when I opened my2 hives a month ago and say that they both made it through the rough Maine winter. gave them both some sugar candy, went back a week or so later and gave them more candy and pollin patties. Both were still alive although one was a little less active and had not eaten all of the candy. Ten days later, returned and the one hive was dead ): The other one still very active and had finished off both the candy and the pollin patty, which I replaced. When I examined the dead hive, I noticed some new staining on the wrap I had around the hive (but not overwhelming like I've seen in pictures of nosema) and tons of what looked like recently dead bees. There was a TON of honey left, a number of almost fully formed and not deformed or ill looking bees still unhatched but really couldn't find ANY jcapped brood at all. It was pretty damp in there and there was some mold, especially in the bottom, now empty, chamber. I didn't see any mites and not a lot of staining inside the hive. I treated in the fall with fumilin and formic acid. ANy ideas what happened? I have pictures if that would help . . .

Don't want to lose my last hive . . . have a couple nucs coming but have gotten attached to these year old gals!!! Help!!

[standman]

Based on what little I know, I would say that the moisture did them in. Did you have any top ventilation on the hive? A picture might help. There are others on here who have much more experience that I do. Sorry about your loss.

[BeeMe]

Thank you Standman for your reply. I appreciate you understanding about how hard it is to lose a hive in the beginning with so little knowledge even when you have such a willingness to be good to the bees and have worked so hard to do a good job.

As for the rest of the forum, well I guess I am just too much of a beginner for you to want to waste your time giving me advice. After 2 posts asking questions that I know must have seemed to all of you to be quite elemental, and with almost no response, I guess I've realized this forum is for ones far too advanced for me.

When I learn enough from the books and other locals who do seem to find the time to answer my question I hope I'll remember what it was like to be so new, so vulnerable and will be willing to help all of those who ask me for help. I was so hoping I'd find them in this forum . . .

I wish you all the best beekeeping.

[oldenglish]

sorry you are not getting more answers, I would like to advise but as I only got my bees last week I am not really sure what I am doing yet, good luck with your bees

[beedeetee]

BeeMe,

The problem is that we all lose hives like that with no real reason that we know of. Most of my losses come from the end of February to the middle of April. I don't lose many over the December-February part of the year.

Sometimes the queen fails and can't lay enough brood to keep up with the old bees dying. If she quit laying in the early fall (mid October) it is harder for a weak queen to keep enough bees to get through the late winter. At some point they don't have a critical mass and can't survive. A small cold snap does them in.

It seems that most of my hives that die seem damp inside, but I don't really know if that is a cause or an effect of the loss. I could be mites that helped out, it could be nosema or diysentery that helped out. It could be the queen starting to fail. It could be moisture that helped. It just could be a little of all of them.

I know that it is frustrating to lose a hive and really not know what caused it but it happens to all of us. To be honest, thats part of the challenge of beekeeping.

[BeeMe]

thank you for your kind response . . . it does help

[RayMarler]

Don't give up on us BeeMe, like BeeDeeTee says, we all lose hives and don't know the particular reasons. Beedeetee gave you a good round explanation of what happens most of the time. I myself lost 6 hives this winter and early spring. From the signs I saw and the reading I've done, I've come to the conclusion that 2 were from varroa and 4 were from nosema, and I compounded the problems by using crisco/sugar patties to treat for trachael too late in the fall which can cause or amplify nosema.

Don't give up, you've got one good hive that can be split to give you a second when a good nectar flow starts up. Best of luck!

[standman]

Hang in there, BeeME. It will get better. Your question has been a real help to me though, because it helped me understand one of the reasons I love beekeeping: I love to analyze and try to solve problems. And beekeeping presents plenty of those. Plus, bees are so resilient that you are bound to have some success, if you just stick with it.

[Hobie]

I've had posts sit for 4 days with no response. It can be frustrating when you are a beginner (as I am) and need help. But you have to understand that this is a forum of real people, with jobs and families, not a "customer service" website.

Some, like myself, thought it would be better not to post than to write a non-answer like "Sorry, I've lost hives, too, but have no experience with your situation."


As for the rest of the forum, well I guess I am just too much of a beginner for you to want to waste your time giving me advice.

Stuff like this doesn't help.

[France]

BeeMe,
I do not know what you expected when you asked the above questions? Beekeeping is an art and not an exact science. . .
I have been with bees for 54 years now and I still loose an occasional hive! I too do not know why, although I would give my eyeteeth to know exactly why!?
Most important chore for beekeeper is, making sure that bees go into winter with a lot of food, (natural food) and that their hives are dry! A little moisture will do them in, if weather in their locations gets cold enough or is exceptionally humid?! (So, an upper entrance, on the same side as the bottom one - is a must!)
To most of us a little moisture don't mean much - but it should. If a man/woman would be left in the bush in cold weather - the trick to survival is not to sweat and not to get wet. Same goes for bees. It is not funny to be stuck in a wet box with nowhere and no way to get dry and warm up. . .
Bees do not heat their box, per se, they only heat selves in/and the cluster. So, a little moisture limits the outside layer of clustering bees from rotating and if they are not able to rotate, to get to the inside of cluster and get fed and warm up - the whole structure of cluster-function starts to erode and the collapse is eminent. . .

Another fact is, that it is difficult to predict what caused your bees to fail? One would have to see such hive, to take a shot and hazard a guess. . ?
So, don't give up!
I too get attached to my bees, especialy when I only have a few hives and loss of one could be a 30 or even 50% of them.

Don't forget, we all learn, right down to the day when we cash in our chips! No man/woman on this earth knows it all and never will! But, there is no quitting! If it were, then we have to accept the unexpected, the strange and the unknown - with diminished rights to complain. . .

Regards,
France

[alpha6]

From what you posted in your first post I would say that your first hive went queenless during the winter or in the fall and your old bees that made it through winter eventually died off. I would suggest checking for eggs or brood after your first week of nice weather in the spring, this will give you an indication of the queens status. Don't expect a full frame of brood, but you should see a small pattern.

Also be careful with wraps. Hives need to circulate air, especially if there is a lot of humidity in the air. The moisture will condensate on the roof and drip back onto the cluster. Wet and cold make dead bees.

Lastly, there are many people here willing to respond to anyones questions, but we don't stay logged on to beesource 24/7. Sometimes its a couple of days between my being able to get onto the forum, so just because you don't get a response right away don't take it as a personal insult. It just could be that the people that would offer advice are not logged in yet.

Best of luck with your future beekeeping.

[clarkfarm]

BeeMe

I am new to this forum and only got my bees -- one nuc -- last year. My bees came through -- so far -- very strong but several new bee keepers in my association lost their bees. I don't know if I did anything different and I live in a warmer climate than you do even though it got down to 7 degrees here this winter. Here are several things I did that may or may not be appropriate for you.

I did not harvest honey this year but left all for the bees. I used a screened bottom board even when it was 7 degrees. I put powdered sugar on them beginning last Spring about once a week from the top of each box and continued until Fall. (shook it on top of the frames and used a bee brush to brush it down into each box). I do not use chemicals in my hive. I have one deep and three supers on there now and all are full of bees. I did not have to feed at all this winter.

Here in Virginia there are local bee inspectors who will come and look at a dead colony and help you figure out what happened. Don't know if you have that where you are.

Hopes this helps. Hand in there.