Worldwide Beekeeping
Beekeeping => Beekeeping 101 => Topic started by: riverbee on January 27, 2014, 06:45:35 pm
-
a great pdf file on bee bearding, with some great photos to help you identify bearding versus swarming; and also discusses the differences of bearding vs. swarming.
from the article:
"What is bearding?
It’s the clustering or hanging of older bees out at the front of the hive during very hot weather. When bees do that it looks like the hive has a beard. This
behaviour coincides with the onset of the hot humid days and nights (midJune to August). Bearding begins when the summer temperatures reach 38°C (100°F) or more. On hot and humid evening, many bees will loiter through the night and even during the day outside the hive clinging to the front of the hive or on the landing board doing nothing. Some hives will form large beards of bees, covering the whole front of the brood box. Some will beard much more. This has to do with the temperature inside the hive, space available, and the population (crowding) of the hive. A hive with plenty of ventilation will probably have less bees gathering on the front of it"
discusses:
Why Bees Beard
Bearding and Swarming
What Should The Beekeeper Do? with some tips.
pdf article here:
The Phenomenon of Bee Bearding (http://www.countryrubes.com/images/The_Phenomenon_of_Bee_Bearding2_8_17_10.pdf)
for myself, i don't use screen bottom boards. entrances; i have 2 entrances year round, bottom and top. my top entrances are wider notches cut out of my inner cover (about 3-3 1/2 inches) notch side down on the top brood box rather than notch side up. i don't use entrance reducers through spring, summer and early fall months, unless a new hive, nuc, or potential robbing. i use 9 frames in my deeps rather than 10. i use a ventilation box similar to tim arheits design of honey run apiaries. i build these myself, and started using them several years ago, they work for me and seem to improve ventilation. before i started building and using these, i would tip the outer cover back on the tops of my hives. location and water; my bees fortunately have a nearby river for a water source. location is limited for me because of the bears. i keep my hives in an old rectangular corn crib that has a tin roof on top, surrounded by electric fencing. shelter from hot summer sun, rain and snow, but in the winter months, my hives do not receive a great deal of sunlight. we will all have trade offs for locating hives, just do the best you can.
please share your bearding pix, i know iddee has some good ones, and also anyone who has pix of their vent boxes, marbees? can't remember who uses these.....LOL!
also, please post any pictures or share information you have relative to this subject to share with others on how you do it. ventilation, location, water, equipment, etc.
bees will always beard, but there are some some things we can do as beekeepers to recognize it and keep them from getting overheated and help them control and maintain a constant temp in the hive.
-
I had one hive that bearded very heavily two years in a row. The second year they started drawing out queen cells and I pulled those frames out into nucs. These bees often have fairly long cells drawn with no larvae so they are a bit tricky to read. Carni and maybe some Russian in their mix.
This past September one hive that I had noticed bearding some but not real bad, swarmed out. In thinking back they seemed to be hanging out but not foraging in and out much. I thought it past the swarm date so didnt treat it very seriously. I caught the swarm and they went right to work building up. Two weeks later a couple of active queen cells. I dont know if they were trying to supersede or what but I was done messing with them. That is the first queen cells I destroyed. They seem to be wintering well.
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fs24.postimg.cc%2Fpxdcj3glt%2Fbirds_n_bees_061.jpg&hash=597c2440ad80a324fe096b18ab4ca9399e52a311) (http://postimg.cc/image/pxdcj3glt/)
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fs30.postimg.cc%2F5a9sf3aq5%2Fbirds_n_bees_054.jpg&hash=347ec9e0744af4023695dbee29adcfc235638675) (http://postimg.cc/image/5a9sf3aq5/)
-
I use white paint and I provide water sources, but I am going to have as much sunlight as possible hitting my hives. We have growing small hive beetle problems. The more sun on the hives, the fewer small hive beetles inside. This is another example of beekeeping being local and adjusting good advice to fit local conditions.
I'll take bearding over small hive beetles any day.
-
This is what I call a strong, healthy hive. No reason to change a thing. Just enjoy it.
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi81.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fj226%2FIddee%2Fe83d90e6.jpg&hash=fa3ba10d7319fc418ed3795b675f27476ef57a3f) (http://s81.photobucket.com/user/Iddee/media/e83d90e6.jpg.html)
-
Good article here :)
http://www.countryrubes.com/images/The_Phenomenon_of_Bee_Bearding2_8_17_10.pdf
-
Good read. Thanks Jen!
-
jen started a topic and posted in general beekeeping, unaware that we had the same pdf file and topic here in beekeeping 101 on bearding, so i merged the two topics so her post and scotts post would not be lost. a great pdf file. hard to think about bearding or swarming in january when it was first posted....... :D
-
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fs28.postimg.cc%2F4nfxyovex%2F10509720_10201456743300645_261704136793900401_n.jpg&hash=4b683dfaa3b6f2e7d94dd3b7764cd0a609203517) (http://postimg.cc/image/4nfxyovex/)
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fs30.postimg.cc%2Frjkx1u8r1%2F10514656_10201456743340646_3802768278818026101_n.jpg&hash=8a205d9369cf32b2a8332f3b6f03268339337683) (http://postimg.cc/image/rjkx1u8r1/)
Sorry if the pics are a bit off took these with my cell.
-
I think you should take the reducer out to give them most of all more ventilation in your hive for the temperature is as hot or hotter than I have here.
Ken
-
i did when i saw them do this for the first time. Just waited till they went back in lol
-
Was bit warm here today, 92 F.
Most were nearly this thick. They were actually hoping to get a shower.
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi296.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fmm161%2FTimciscel%2FIMG_20140708_201652335.jpg&hash=2d97a1240994a913eefe395681514af5af12caa6) (http://s296.photobucket.com/user/Timciscel/media/IMG_20140708_201652335.jpg.html)
They are Dirty Girls and Dry, so I hope they get a shower soon ! :laugh: :laugh:
-
nice pic garden hive!!! holy bearding bees!!!......... :D
hope you get some of our rain soon, seems we have had the rain that everyone else needs.
-
Thanks River, for the wishes to share!
The rain came in buckets on the 3rd. But only within several mile of me. Grass is very crunchy. The clover is all shriveled up.
Hoping for some soon.
-
Took this a couple of days ago, when it was still summer. Ted
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fs28.postimg.cc%2Fjnl2ji83d%2FIMG_20140707_150939_151.jpg&hash=ea96a1725fa24cfdd3d5b3f8e517314c978004af) (http://postimg.cc/image/jnl2ji83d/)
-
LOL When it was still summer....
Yep, It actually made it to 70 today!!! 53 tonight.. couple more days buddy, we'll be back in the hot seats!
-
nice bearding pic ted! like scott said.....well, haven't seen any bearding lately, didn't get above 65 here today...... :D
-
Found this when I went past the other morning...
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg.tapatalk.com%2Fd%2F14%2F07%2F25%2Fpame8aza.jpg&hash=bd426aaa8835b6386c426c879090180bcbce8ed3)
More wash boarding than bearding, but it's the best I can do.
-
hmmm. that was a video at one point in time... :-X
-
zweefer.......... :D
in order to load videos, you have to upload them to a you tube account first, then just place the short code in here, and they will work! do you still have the video?
-
Yup!
Not the best quality (I was unaware this was going to be published :-[ )
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuGOdE-JIeA
-
great!
zweefer, when you place the code in the reply box, all you see is the code, if you click on 'preview' to see your post before you click on 'post', you will see the video.....hope this helps!
-
I show it as working... do you not?
-
RB, I think he meant he was unaware someone was going to put it on Utube.
-
:yah:
-
"RB, I think he meant he was unaware someone was going to put it on Utube."
........... :D :D :D
oops sorry zweef, my brain was thinking otherwise, ANYWAYS, thanks for the vid!
-
Good vid of washboarding. Still trying to catch a large group doing it.. I often see a handful of bees washboarding, and when I do see several doing it I havent got my camera with me.. Still have not learned to keep it close.
-
So am currently looking at my hives and see this : (https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ftapatalk.imageshack.com%2Fv2%2F14%2F08%2F22%2Fe5381aaa4e974a81a197eab1fdebe577.jpg&hash=1cec8fc3f711d665001adea9227719526477d5ea)
Why would one hive be bearding so much more than the other? I have a scheduled inspection tomorrow, should I be looking for something special in either one that may explain it?
-
No real explination why one would beard more then any other. I use some solid BB and some screened, get about the same amount with either.
I have 1 hive that has been outside most of this summer. The photo I posted earlier in this thread, could have taken another last night but it would be the same photo.
A couple weeks back I checked in on them to make sure they had plenty of room and even moved some frames around to promote some more work inside. They accomplish the task that I set for them and still hang outside. ;D
So other then they have room, nothing extra to look for. But they most of the time have plenty of room and just like to stay out where it's a bit cooler.
-
My hives sit in a row facing south southeast.. The hive on the west end of the row shades the other hives and is usually the one that has the largest beard.
-
zweef,
bearding can vary between hives as tim and scott said....the only thing i would really watch or look for this time of year is a stronger hive robbing a weaker hive.