[perez627]

I was checking on my hive since i thought it needed a new box. i have only had the bees for 3 weeks but they are growing so fast. So i figured i would check to see if my queen was laying. i found a ton of eggs so i started putting everything back together and was going to close it up. It was then that i noticed a very large bee scurrying around on my veil. I thought surely this cant be the queen but this bee was soo big. I yelled to my husband to come help me get her since she had crawled to the top of my head. It took him a few minutes so i just stood as still as i could. She must have flown off my head at some point because i saw a cluster of bees on the lid and sure enough there she was. I ran inside and got a paint marker and marked her as well as i could and held her in a colander to dry. I am still so stressed out about it all. i guess this is why you shouldn't check your hives that often. I really hope i didnt injure her. Thanks for reading!!!

I attached a picture of her with my diy paint job.

 

[Nelsonhoneyfarms]

Hey, you got her back into the hive and in one piece. Sounds like a good day to me! She will be fine, and now you have a good story to tell. Have fun with them and don’t stress about it - life’s too short!

 

[laketrout]

Your fine , getting inside your hives is how you will learn and get more comfortable working the hive have fun with your bee's no stress , just dont go in every day for no reason but maybe once a week check for swarming and making sure there is drawn comb above your queen for her to move onto when she gets crowded

 

[perez627]

Thanks! Ill check on her in a week. she had frame #2 full of eggs so it was time for a new box. Im hoping they draw it out and get it ready for her.

 

[JConnolly]

After you have raised a few drones I suggest you practice marking on a few drones. Its pretty easy to get the hang of it but a little practice will make it easier without getting paint all over her. Drones are expendable to the hive so they are good to practice on.

 

[perez627]

Will a sharpie water based paint pen work? That's what I used.

 

[Cloverdale]

I was checking on my hive since i thought it needed a new box. i have only had the bees for 3 weeks but they are growing so fast. So i figured i would check to see if my queen was laying. i found a ton of eggs so i started putting everything back together and was going to close it up. It was then that i noticed a very large bee scurrying around on my veil. I thought surely this cant be the queen but this bee was soo big. I yelled to my husband to come help me get her since she had crawled to the top of my head. It took him a few minutes so i just stood as still as i could. She must have flown off my head at some point because i saw a cluster of bees on the lid and sure enough there she was. I ran inside and got a paint marker and marked her as well as i could and held her in a colander to dry. I am still so stressed out about it all. i guess this is why you shouldn't check your hives that often. I really hope i didnt injure her. Thanks for reading!!!

I attached a picture of her with my diy paint job. View attachment 55305

Great story! You did good.

 

[Nelsonhoneyfarms]

I’ve never tried that so I’m not sure. Just to be one the safe side, I use the paint pens from Mann Lake that are made for queen marking. They work well, even though I store them all year in my truck toolbox in the Texas heat. They also carry a one-handed queen catcher contraption that is handy for marking the queen.