I've had a vew hives with this wild Yellow wax. It's really yellow, the color of hot dog mustard (not the grey poupon variety)
Seems weird. There's some yellow pollen on other frames, but it looks like the wax itself is bright yellow. I first saw it in a cutout I did out in a very rural area, then saw it in some of my hives. First time ever.
Any thoughts? All norms are off after this warm winter we had.
Mine are made out of pine. The first one that was super yellow this year was a cutout, and the building was made out of pine and cedar, but then I saw it in some of the frames of my hives. I feel like it would have to be something the bees ate, not staining from feet.
I live in Chesapeake Va which is about 100 miles southeast of you. It is strange but one swarm I caught had the same yellow looking wax that you described. It was bright yellow like French's mustard. I look at it closely at it seems that they had tracked yellow pollen over the comb. My other two swarm nucs didn't have this "yellow" comb. It seems this one hive either found a good source or wanted this type of pollen. As I watched then bring in pollen it all seemed like it was bright orange. This was about a month to five weeks ago. I don't recall what was blooming then. About two weeks ago the swarm swarmed. Go figure. They built up fast but didn't seem over crowded. A few days after they swarmed I went into the hive to see if they left a swarm cell behind but all I saw was a bunch of empty emergency queen cups and a hive load of drone brood. At that time the comb didn't seem to have the bright yellow as two weeks before. Since I'm south of you I'm betting whatever was blooming down here is now blooming up there. If you figure out what this yellow blooming flower or tree is please let me know. Oh, and my nucs are just pine woodware from Brushy Mountian so I don't think this is from the the woodware.
When I started a few years ago my packages drew yellow comb and my supplier said it was do to the flow they were working at that time(could by a number of things)and it would be alright. Jim
Not the pollen. Wax is generated from the nectar used to make it. Dark nectars equate to yellowish wax. Locally, if the wax maker tanks up on redbud (dark) nectar the wax is decidedly yellow.
Walt
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