Rookie needs advice: Is this a robbing event?

[srf_onezero]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLGm8JFwSIg

This is my first hive that I installed in April. I saw a huge frenzy in front of the hive on the first warm day after a cold spell of about 5 days of rain and cool weather (40s at night). I had put in a division board feeder on the top hive body during this spell to get them to draw some comb in the upper hive body, which I put on about a week ago.

I thought it may have been robbing, so I put in the entrance reducer.
I did the old screen trick after dark (covered entrance with screen) and in the morning there were only 4 bees outside the hive. I am hoping this indicates this was not a robbing event and just my bees being busy on a nice warm day after the cold snap. Or more brood hatching out?

Advice appreciated.

Thanks.

[Oldbee]

"I am hoping this indicates this was not a robbing event and just my bees being busy on a nice warm day after the cold snap. Or more brood hatching out?"

I would go with that thought at this time of year in, what,.. Michigan?

A hive that was installed in April should be able to defend and take care of itself by now. I didn't see evidence of robbing from the video, but of course it's hard to tell,.. from here,.. I didn't see bees crawling up the front of the hive at the entrance.

I cut pieces of wood to make my own entrance reducers rather then relying on the bee supplier ones. That way I can vary the entrance myself as I think the bees need it and relevant to the population of the hive.

[David LaFerney]

It doesn't look like robbing to me. If it was you would see fighting going on at the entrance. Other signs usually too-robbers exploring other parts of the hive looking for another way in. Robbers climbing up from the entrance to get more altitude before taking off. BTW robbers are often black because all their hair is gone from fighting. When you see a robbing frenzy you won't have to ask- you'll know it's something bad.

[JoeMcc]

Looks good to me. See how the bees are waiting for that perfect time to dive into the entrance? If they were robbers they would be darting all directions.

It wont be long and you will have to remove that entrance reducer.



Joe

[Charlie B]

Looks like a normal hive to me but you need to lose that reducer!

[honeyman46408]

Yes looks good and if you have enough bees for 2 boxes you dont need the reducer, take it out and give them more room to come and go

[Corvair68]

Looks like orientation flights to me.

[srf_onezero]

Thanks for all the advice. I took the reducer out and a huge cloud of bees came out. They seem busy as the cliche goes.