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Where did my bees go?
I started the season with 131 females (large) and 161 males (small).
We had a cold, wet, prolonged spring in Seattle, and the bees hatched two weeks later than they did last year. The cherry blossoms were long gone and the apples were half-finished by the time the bees emerged. I did see some males here and there over the course of a month, but I still didn't see any females until the weather was over 60 degrees for two days in a row.
When I peer into the tubes now (April 26th) with a bright flashlight, I'm counting 51 nesting females. There are maybe 20 females that haven't emerged yet.
Where on earth did sixty female bees go?
I've got four different style houses out, with a total of 182 tubes. The houses are located on the southern wall of a house in the city, with lots of flowering plants and trees in the neighborhood.
I started the season with 131 females (large) and 161 males (small).
We had a cold, wet, prolonged spring in Seattle, and the bees hatched two weeks later than they did last year. The cherry blossoms were long gone and the apples were half-finished by the time the bees emerged. I did see some males here and there over the course of a month, but I still didn't see any females until the weather was over 60 degrees for two days in a row.
When I peer into the tubes now (April 26th) with a bright flashlight, I'm counting 51 nesting females. There are maybe 20 females that haven't emerged yet.
Where on earth did sixty female bees go?
I've got four different style houses out, with a total of 182 tubes. The houses are located on the southern wall of a house in the city, with lots of flowering plants and trees in the neighborhood.