My son called and said i have some bad news dad
. Said he was at one of my outyards looking for deer signs and seen two of my hives had been knock over and the bees were dead,said he left them alone because he didn't know what to do (he's not into bees. YET
). Well i drove up there (35 miles one way) and seen the two middle hives turned over (there 8 hives in that yard) they are all on concrete blocks, one hive was on it's back with the bottomboard still setting on the blocks and the lid about 2 ft. away the wind could blow all the way through it and some dead bees on the ground. I stood it up and started to take it apart to salvage the honey (it was heavy), i heard a buzz the same time i felt a hit, my left hand and arm had 30 or more bees crawling on it, i put the lid on it and set it back on the bottomboaed, 2 deeps ans a med. super (it strained my milk)
, but got it done
.
The other one was up side down with the lid still on and the bottomboard still on the blocks, it also was 2 deeps and a med. super, not as heavy but still enough stores left. I pecked on the side and sure enough i heard a loud buzz (put my smock and hood on this time
. and got it back on the bottomboard, bees strarted coming out the top entrance at me
. These hives are about 5 ft. apart with 4 hives in the front row and 4 hives in back of them. The hives turned over was the two in the middle of the front row? They are in the woods below hills on the east and north i don't know how long they were turned over and we've had several nights in the 20's and todays high was 30F, never seen any sign of vandals or the leaves shuffled around the hives? We did have some strong winds, but the hives were to heavy to be blowed over?? Now to wait and see if they make it through the winter, the boxes never came apart when i set them up and set them back on the blocks there was leaves froze to the hive parts that came in contact to the ground so they had to of been that way for awhile? I'm thinking deer maybe? any idea's or advice? Jack
