After e-mailing Ron whom removed the exposed colony in the previous post
on Bee-L, he suggested I publish my observation of his picture here - as
I have reason to believe that his exposed hive lasted through the
winter:
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Ron, I think your homeowner was mistaken if he/she thinks the bees
showed up in June of this year.  The comb displayed in your photo is
much older than 5 or 6
months based on the color of the comb.  When the bees use the comb
successively for brood, each cycle will turn the comb darker & darker -
and your hive resembles one which is probably a year old. Certainly no
older, since no parts are pitch-black.  Your homeowner probably just
'noticed' the bees around June since that would be about the time the
hive would be building up in numbers, allowing the hive to be easily
recognized.  The evergreen would keep the hive shielded from sight
during the fall & winter.

What I'm getting to is how an exposed colony lasted through the winter.
Either these bees survived or a second swarm showed up in May or June
(likely) and took over the 'house'.

The architecture tells a different story as well.  Notice the jagged
corners & twisted form?  All the new hives (less than 6 months) I remove

are usually observed in some version of a semi-circular form - with
slight burr comb for
stability.  Hives older than a year have brace comb EVERYWHERE.  The
circular combs become jagged as the bees chew down the original form (or
add to) for a more stable 'protective' design.

It's possible the queen was a tremendous layer and laid eggs throughout
the comb, 3 or 4 times, turning  the hive off-brown color - but then the

hive would be much larger with more fresh white comb on the outside for
feeding the brood.

This isn't science, but after 100's of feral colony removals, the comb
really shows what the bees have been up to - how healthy they are(were);

what they've been collecting for nectar & pollen; definitely how good
the queen is; etc.
Personally, I think it's possible for bees to survive mildly freezing
weather
if they are able to huddle together in large enough numbers - somewhat
protected from piercing wind chill.  Too bad someone didn't notice the
hive last fall!

That's my 2 cents.  Tell me what you think if you have additional info
on the removal.
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Ron replied that this past winter was "exceptionally mild" - so perhaps
the original bees survived stuck between those branches.


Matthew Westall - Castle Rock, CO
Earthling Bees, Inc - "Take Me To Your Feeder"