I am observing unusual behavior in a "spit" this morning, instead of normal foraging activities. Large numbers of bees are fanning at the hive entrance, the balcony floor under the entrance and even down the wall below the hive.
The queen(s) should have emerged about 3-5 days ago. Could this behavior indicate the virgin queen is out on her mating flight?
[In the time it took me to write the above post, everything has returned to quiet (did I mention there was quite a loud buzz) and normal; the bees are no longer fanning or bearding down the balcony. I watched the behavior for about 15 minutes and do not know how long it had been going on before I first noticed it.]
The queen(s) should have emerged about 3-5 days ago. Could this behavior indicate the virgin queen is out on her mating flight?
[In the time it took me to write the above post, everything has returned to quiet (did I mention there was quite a loud buzz) and normal; the bees are no longer fanning or bearding down the balcony. I watched the behavior for about 15 minutes and do not know how long it had been going on before I first noticed it.]