Hi Paul,

Just wanted to touch base again on your post.  I have a similar observation where bees are dying during feeding. In my case, I was late feeding so some of the bigger colonies starved a little and I noticed some dead bees out front. When I started feeding the dying stopped but then resumed during feeding.  Of course, robbing started as the dearth deepened and I thought they were killing each other's bees but that still doesn’t seem to account for the number of dead bees out front. I’ve been shoveling the drop zone clean of bees to try to keep track of the dying at it may have stopped now but not before lots of bees died. One unusual condition in my yard this year is the population in the colonies, they're stronger than in previous years. Please let me know if you discover anything. 

- I heat my syrup >130 so maybe some HMF is a factor but I've always done that and the time at temp is brief.
- I also used OV vaporization four times during the season plus an application of formic- I can't see how that's related but...
- My nosema counts are nonexistent. 

Bill Hesbach
Cheshire CT
Northeast USA

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