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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
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Thu, 29 Jun 2006 17:27:53 GMT
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>>were they rejecting the hive box? (Or, maybe I rushed things 
because the neighbors were watching me.)

I had a similar situation 2 weeks ago.  I removed a colony from a 
person's house wall.  At home (some 15 mi away) that eveining, I 
shook the bees out of the bee vac box into a nuc with some of the 
colony's own brood and eggs (a couple of loose combs).  I checked 
them before going to work the next morning and they seemed fine - I 
even located the queen on a frame.

When I returned from work they were up in a nearby tree.  I shook 
them down into the nuc again. The next morning, I lifted the nuc lid 
and seemed happy and had even started drawing out one frame.

When I returned from work the next day, they were gone and history.  
The nuc was empty with abondoned brood.  They could not have 
overheated since the nuc was in some shade and the weather was in the 
70's.

It's a lesson learned - can't expect a swarm or a moved colony to 
stay put in a new box.  Next time, I'll slide an excluder under the 
box for a few days until the queen starts laying in the new box!

Clipping the queen's wing would ensure she and the bees don't get 
very far should they abscond but I don't like clipping wings.

Waldemar
Long Island, NY

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