"Peter Chiang Mai"
>You ask about absconding.  This is probably my biggest cause of colony 
>loss.  The causes are not always clear.  It may be that in the hot season 
>some of the colonies get just too hot (the sun can move around during the 
>year and what was a hive in the shade becomes a hive in the sun for part of 
>the day).

Obviously putting hives in deep shade or rigging some sort of shade would be 
a good idea, but have you tried fully open mesh floors?  The one that we use 
is shown here:
http://www.stratford-upon-avon.freeserve.co.uk/Newsletters/September2005.htm
This gives excellent ventilation.  (I assume that you alredy have 
ventilation in roofs.)
Another thought - do your bees have permanent access to water for cooling 
their hives?

>The other cause that I have not figured out (if it is the cause or I see 
>the effect) is ants.    ... those ants may be small but they bite and focus 
>your attention.

I remember looking at some bees in India and quickly realising that I was 
stood on one of these ant's nests - with sandals on!  Yes, they bite!  I 
think that you will have to put your hives on stands with their feet in 
dishes of oil - ants will not cross old engine oil!

>The bees were totally absent from one hive and when I opened it up a number 
>of hornets came out.

Fully open mesh floors will allow you to reduce your entrance size to keep 
out the hornets.  Ours are 7mm which allows queens and drones to get through 
but not hornets - not that we have a real problem with hornets, it is wasps 
that can be a nightmare here.

Best wishes

Peter 

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