I put a swarm that was rained on and on the ground which I happened across Thursday into a nuc. We had rain Friday and a break on Saturday where my other hives were out en masse, then rain all night and all day Sunday, it won't let up until tomorrow evening. I had drizzled honey in the nuc on the top of the frames initially to draw them in and give them a boost after being all wet and cold on the ground all night.
I put a feeder with honey on the nuc entrance and it's empty, they used about 3 oz of honey or it got washed out by the driving rain, I don't know.
Any way, I looked in Saturday after seeing no activity at the entrance and all the bees are in a cluster on one wall and the bottom not on the old comb in one of the frames or being industrious.
Why?
What will happen? Will they die? Have they refused to accept the nuc as home and are waiting for better weather to abscond?
Should I drizzle more honey on the frames?
Disclaimer: I am using raw, unfiltered honey from my friends hives he harvested in September a few cities away. I am not using unknown honey or anything like that.
I have read about putting in a frame of open brood, I will see what I can spare from my fast build hive, they seem like they could spare some, I do have two frames out currently, I removed them so the swarm would get into the box and I could put the lid on. I hope it doesn't rain all day tomorrow too, I hate waiting when I have hungry bees who might leave.
A frame of open brood is like a magnet for a swarm. But be sure, as Ray says, to have all frames in place in the nuc. If it has been cold they may just be clustering, waiting for better temps.
Give them a frame of eggs, it's less of a drain on the colony you pull it from than older open larva is since there's been less feeding and the queen can relay a frame of eggs pronto. And yes, put in another frame also to make the nuc have no open spaces. It could be they are clustering because of the open space.
I have tried just eggs, did not work. Open brood has the greatest effect on keeping a swarm. Have never lost a swarm that was given open larva. Even drone brood or a small patch the size of a silver dollar will lock them in.
If they are still clustered they are just waiting to leave. If you keep them there long enough it is possiable they will make comb the queen could lay in it. When she does that your good.
Would not drizzle anything on top, likely to attract robbers (bee, ants, yellow jackets, mammals...). The least disturbance the better. Until they have brood it does not take much to make them leave.
You want to have all the frames in the box, if they stay they will build comb in the empty space first, then you will have to do a cutout on them. Cutout can cause a hive to abscond, attract beetles and robber...
I put in a small comb with capped brood and almost mature larvae with a few smaller ones, it was double combed in my fast growing hive, they kept 're-attaching this one comb every time I rubber banded it in another frame. Unfortunately there weren't a lot of stores given it was attached to a frame that had some. Should I worry they won't be able to feed them? There is still honey in their feeder, I don't know if they or the other bees are utilising it.
I know feeding encourages robbing, but they have near nothing to eat.
well these dang bees totally ignored the brood. Maybe this swarm is sick or dying. I moved the frames around twice to get the bees from the mass to climb on the brood comb, both times they crawled away. I am sure the brood is all dead now since they haven't been fed or kept warm by stupid swarm bees. They haven't moved on their own since Thursday essentially and probably swarmed Wednesday. How long will they last before mass bee death?
IF they are queenless it will take a frame with eggs. Otherwise, they are just a hopeless bunch of bees, and may not tend to older brood. Did you get the proper amount of frames in that nuc yet? They need a frame with stores too I bet. Is this bunch of bees worth worrying about?
That's interesting, I didn't know a swarm could be queenless. Is it because they swarm with her and she dies from some accident? If I am queenless again I am screwed. They may have come from my first hive and if so, then I have a swarm and a hive which are queenless. I could combine the bees I suppose and put in a frame of eggs from my other hive, but I hate to do it since it means cutting comb off the frame because the would be donor hive has a deep brood chamber and the other hive is in mediums.
I have all five frames in that nuc and bottom dwelling inactive bees.
I don't just want them to die, I will try to combine Friday when I have a chance.
Temps are high sixties with some mid seventies coming soon.
The other bees are going nuts during the heat of the day.
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