Worldwide Beekeeping

Beekeeping => Swarms, Cut Outs, Trap Outs and Bee Trees => Topic started by: Yankee11 on April 08, 2015, 08:45:35 pm

Title: Question about a swarm i just caught
Post by: Yankee11 on April 08, 2015, 08:45:35 pm

I just caught a small swarm and while looking for the queen I could her piping. The queen screaming   :-)

I found a ball of bees and there was a small queen in the middle of the ball. They were balling her. I like to have never gotten her free. Why would a hive swarm just to kill the queen in the swarm. I haven't found another queen yet.

Title: Re: Question about a swarm i just caught
Post by: Jen on April 08, 2015, 10:44:03 pm

Oh Man! That would have un-nerved me to pieces hearing that. Maybe... when the swarm took to the air, one of the capped queens was hatched and she went with them in addition to the original queen? throwing it out on the table...

What are you going to do with that queen Yankee?

Title: Re: Question about a swarm i just caught
Post by: LazyBkpr on April 09, 2015, 09:32:34 am

I have seen bees ball queens for what I considered very strange and un appropriate reasons..   On occasion I have opened a nuc with a new queen to see them ball the queen.. they typically fall to the bottom board..  I think they blame the queen when EVER something weird happens.. I am also not completely certain that balling the queen is INTENDED to do her in... I have often wondered if they were protecting her??    But in the excitement she occasionally is stung?
   Dont know enough about it... only know what I have seen...    Combining a nuc to a hive too fast, or disturbing a young or newly introduced queen too soon after introduction....

Title: Re: Question about a swarm i just caught
Post by: Yankee11 on April 09, 2015, 01:57:28 pm

Just looked in box. I don't see a queen at all.

I have a nuc that has 2 frames with capped Qcells. I gave them one frame and left the other. We will see what happens now.

Title: Re: Question about a swarm i just caught
Post by: LazyBkpr on April 10, 2015, 07:05:40 pm

piping is a queen challenging another queen, not screaming as in pain. You probably have a virgin queen in there somewhere. Watch the cell and see if it gets torn open. either way, it pays to make sure.

Title: Re: Question about a swarm i just caught
Post by: Yankee11 on April 10, 2015, 10:23:11 pm

I open swarm again today. Didn't see a queen and queen cells were still in tact.

It was weird to here that in a swarm. I have heard it in a hive before and actually saw both the queens . I watched them until they found each other, then watched them fight until one was dead. It was cool.

Title: Re: Question about a swarm i just caught
Post by: Jen on April 10, 2015, 11:12:34 pm

Yankee- "I watched them until they found each other, then watched them fight until one was dead. It was cool.

     Oh man! I would have a hard time watching them, being mesmerized, wanting to run and get my vid recorder to film it. How many beeks have actually watched a queen fight? That would be priceless footage