Hello Ron & All,
Difficult to say for sure what happened unless the bees in the deadouts had
their heads stuck in cells.(starvation)

> All of the deadouts were found full of honey and small clusters.

If you rule out mites and disease then the normal cause is because the bees
did not raise the last two brood cycles of the season which provides the
young bees needed to winter in colder areas such as yours and mine. In our
area we had over two months fall of drought and  fall pollen was scarce
leading to small clusters. No pollen no brood no matter how much honey or
syrup you toss at the bees.

 > The colonies were strong going into winter.

I can tell at a glance usually if the last two brood cycles were raised. If
strong but old bees then small clusters in spring and slow buildup because
of the small cluster. (fuzzy are young and worn out wings aand shinny backs
are older bees for those which might not know the way to tell).

Those last two brood cycles are more important to me than winter stores as I
can usually get frames of honey or feed to the bees in early spring *in
Missouri*.

Mites or any number of things could be the problem but hard to tell once the
hive is dead except for foulbrood.

Sincerely,
Bob Harrison

-- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l for rules, FAQ and  other info ---