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Temperament: Genetics, Hive Location, Law of Averages, oh my!

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1.1K views 9 replies 5 participants last post by  Dan the bee guy  
V
#1 ·
Here's the deal: I have two 4ft top bar hives full of bees (yes, they've built out just about the whole thing at this point). One has been a pleasure to work with, one HAS NOT. I'm trying to figure out why and what I should be doing about it.

Hive #1
  • In full sun
  • Did not swarm last year (to my knowledge, so "full" russian queen until recent swarm)
  • Built out faster than hive 2
  • Has been easy to work with


Hive #2
  • In part shade
  • Swarmed June of last year, so queen mated with who knows what drones
  • Hive has a bit of an open seam on one end where the wood warped
  • Bees are just GRUMPY, guards have taken to harassing us in the yard when we walk by, and they general sting when the hive is worked

General info:
  • This is a city environment, and these hives are in my backyard. I can't move them, and I have to be able to walk by them several times a day. This wasn't at all an issue last year, they were all very happy to ignore me.
  • The nectar/pollen flow is not a problem right now. There's food EVERYWHERE.
  • The problem bees are small in number. But they won't leave me alone till I get inside or manage to swat them. They've been going after and stinging the dog when they find him.

I'm trying to figure out what the problem is. Is this "normal" and it just didn't get noticed last year because the population was still small? Is this a genetic trend I should be immediately correcting? Or is it some first generation cross sassiness? The hives did just swarm four times, is that a contributing factor? I'm trying to decide if I just got into this without realizing the full picture. My husband is pretty fed up with that particular hive, and doesn't want to go in the backyard without a veil anymore. I don't blame him, I'm starting to get that way myself, but that's not something we can sustain. I also don't want to be drone bombing the neighborhood with this if it's genetic, even if it is "mild" right now.

Thanks for any ideas and suggestions!
 
V
#4 ·
Just checked Saturday, hive 2 has capped queen cells and the last swarm was a few days ago, so I don't believe she's hatched yet. I didn't see eggs in hive 1 but they were breaking down the extra queen cells, so I have it on my to-do to check again soon.

GregV said:
This is exactly what you did.
Of course, according to the current beekeeping pop-culture you should be beekeeping in T-shirt and sandals.
Now you know better.
Click to expand...
Wow, I'll keep my bees' attitude, it's far better than yours!
 
#3 ·
VanBow said:
... I'm trying to decide if I just got into this without realizing the full picture.......
Click to expand...
This is exactly what you did.
Of course, according to the current beekeeping pop-culture you should be beekeeping in T-shirt and sandals.
Now you know better.

Hopefully, only a single cohort of the bees in that hive is overly defensive (there are about 10-20 of those distinct cohorts in the hive).
Search about "angry bees"/"defensive bees" on this exact forum - plenty has been said.
 
L
#6 ·
VanBow said:
... I have two 4ft top bar hives full of bees ... One has been a pleasure to work with, one HAS NOT. I'm trying to figure out why and what I should be doing about it. [clip] I'm trying to figure out what the problem is. Is this "normal" and it just didn't get noticed last year because the population was still small?

Yes - probably. That's often the case.

Is this a genetic trend I should be immediately correcting? Or is it some first generation cross sassiness?

Yes, and Yes. (same thing really)

The hives did just swarm four times, is that a contributing factor?

Yes.

I'm trying to decide if I just got into this without realizing the full picture.

Yes, you did. But - don't take that as some kind of 'put-down' - you're a new beekeeper and didn't know what to expect. No-one does when they first start.

[clip]

Thanks for any ideas and suggestions!
Click to expand...
Re-queening is the obvious answer - either buy another queen, or ...

Divide the 'hot' hive into two, and place those boxes equi-distant from the original hive entrance. That should quieten-down them down by reducing their size (no guarantees, mind), and hopefully divide the foragers equally. In one, the bees will become frantic - that one's queenless. Locate the 'hot' queen in the other box, and squish her.

Then, donate combs of open brood (without rider bees) from your well-behaved hive, one to each of the new queenless boxes. In due course queen-cells will be raised and your problem might then eventually be solved. I emphasise 'might' because there are no guarantees with this sort of thing. It's just something one has to get used to.
LJ
 
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#7 ·
Queen cells with no laying queen from swarming... Yep, can and many times does cause "testy" bees. Let the hive requeen itself and most of the time you'll find it calms back down after the new queen is laying.
 
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