>        Any ideas what's happening?  Defense from robbers?  Elimination of
>sick bees?  Just getting tngled up?
 
 
It is a natural instinct for bees to protect their hive from intruders.
While bees will allow drift, bees bringing honey into their hive by bees
from other hives,they will defend their hive to the death if necessary.
Bees coming into the hive when challenged will offer a taste of necter they
are carrying and through bee dance language will indicate the source of that
necter.
 
  The worker bee spends its life gathering necter and especially when there
are no floral sources available they are not too particular where they get
it..that includes a neighboring hive.  Should they be successful in gaining
entrance and return home, it wouldn't be long before full scale robbing of
one hive by another resulted.  So, the guard bees defend their hive from
intruders.  Should you ever see full blown robbing, close down the hive
under attack, and put some grass into the entrance reducer...by the time the
bees have removed the grass hopefully the onslought will be over.  Keep a
close watch because the hive under attack was probably the weaker of the two
hives.  At another time, check the hive for a laying queen and disease, but
make sure all exposed honey is covered to prevent another episode of
robbing.  A damp cloth over the frames of the open hive, allowing only the
frame your working on to be exposed, helps. You can stack removed supers
ontop of your innercover with the outercover on the top.
 
Best of luck
   Dennis Meeks
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