Dead nuc
Hi this was a strong nuc with 2007 queen. dunno what happened to it. there were visible mites in the cluster although I did not do a count. I did not treat - big mistake!
cluster was next to the honey
this is end frame, there was 1 more frame with the similar sized cluster.
lot of dead bees at the bottom
bee poop.
so what do you think happened?
There is no greater satisfaction than the satisfaction of a job well done.
I would say too few bees to keep warm, at least at the end. Why there were too few bees is another question. The answer could be mites, or something else.
Ross
www.myoldtools.com
I agree with Ross. Too small cluster due to mites or failing queen. If you still have that cluster, check for the queen, if you don't find it there is a chance they entered the winter queenless.
Good luck Gilman
There was a queen in that cluster. I think mites is the most likely problem.
There is no greater satisfaction than the satisfaction of a job well done.
When did you start this nuc and when was the last time you measured the strength?
This was actually a strong hive double deep at one time (this summer) however towards fall it dwindled in numbers.It was from last year 2007 and it wintered well last year. gave me a little honey also in 2007. The last time I checked was in oct it was occupying 5 frames. I put a super on it 5 on 5 and put sugar on top 5 lbs. However it kept going down in numbers I couldn't find out what was wrong. in dec I found it to be dead one day. This was a no treatment hive.
I am going to do powdered sugar from now on.
There is no greater satisfaction than the satisfaction of a job well done.
The steady decline in numbers indicate a failing queen or an issue like foul brood. How did your brood frames look back in the fall?
Good Judgement comes from Experience. Experience comes from Poor Judgement.
Is it really foulbrood?
They had a lot of dead brood in the adjoining frames. capped and abandoned. The amount of brood was much more than the bees could cover.
as a side note my other hive also met the same fate it was a full sized hive when I combined a weak nuc (after killing the queen) and about 4 weeks from then I found the hive dead. small cluster and no dead bees at the bottom. So foul brood becomes a real possibility. Although the frames are not smelling any different.
whats the best way to find out?
I would like to find out before I get new bees this spring.
There is no greater satisfaction than the satisfaction of a job well done.
send a sample of brood comb to the bee lab. It is free, only costs you postage. www.ars.usda.gov.
Good Judgement comes from Experience. Experience comes from Poor Judgement.
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