Hey everyone. Today I went outside in my backyard and noticed that there were maybe 20-30 drones on on the ground in a couple places, some dead, some dying. Havent been out here in a couple of days, but didnt notice them last time i was. They’re being dropped from the sky by other bees. (One just dropped from the sky as i’m writing this)
In the past, if I have a bad varroa infestation I’ll start seeing infected bees on this deck, which healthy bees have taken out of the hive and dropped. But this seems to be 99% drones.
I split my TBH a couple of weeks (2) ago, so I wasn’t sure if maybe these drones had done their duty with a new queen and so they were now dying, but it seems too soon for a new queen to be mating.
I did have a lot of drones in my hive, so maybe that’s all it is. More alive mean more dead in the end.
Wondering if anyone had a guess as to what is going on? (Another just dropped)
Thanks
In the past, if I have a bad varroa infestation I’ll start seeing infected bees on this deck, which healthy bees have taken out of the hive and dropped. But this seems to be 99% drones.
I split my TBH a couple of weeks (2) ago, so I wasn’t sure if maybe these drones had done their duty with a new queen and so they were now dying, but it seems too soon for a new queen to be mating.
I did have a lot of drones in my hive, so maybe that’s all it is. More alive mean more dead in the end.
Wondering if anyone had a guess as to what is going on? (Another just dropped)
Thanks