i went out to check the syrup level on the feeder just now, and found the bees bearding - not a huge beard, but much larger than i've seen it since the triple-digit days this summer. they haven't bearded at all in weeks, at least not that i've noticed. it's in the 60s today, breezy and overcast. the entrance is reduced (has been for a couple of weeks) and the SBB is still open. it seems to be business as usual for the girls who can get through the beard. is this normal, do you think?
and totally unrelated, on my way back to the house i passed the empty nuc boxes that i ordered recently, and stopped short when a wren darted out from between them, not three feet from me. we both froze and just stood there looking at each other, until it eventually flew off. much too late for nesting, and i doubt a wren could jam her way into a nuc box anyway, but has anyone had other creatures (besides rodents, i guess) take up residence in their empty boxes? will i open these things up in spring to find baby birds, bats, wasps, feral cats, or hobos?
and totally unrelated, on my way back to the house i passed the empty nuc boxes that i ordered recently, and stopped short when a wren darted out from between them, not three feet from me. we both froze and just stood there looking at each other, until it eventually flew off. much too late for nesting, and i doubt a wren could jam her way into a nuc box anyway, but has anyone had other creatures (besides rodents, i guess) take up residence in their empty boxes? will i open these things up in spring to find baby birds, bats, wasps, feral cats, or hobos?