Started taking the honey from the bees today. Only got through 2 hives before it started getting dark. a couple of different things happened that I have questons about. First, I have a picture of a bee with a yellow spot in the middle of it's back. The bee is in the middle of the firtst pic,towards the top. Anyone know what that is ? Secondly, the queen has layed eggs 6 boxes up in the hive. There is brood all the way up in the middle frames. Lastley there is alot of drone brood, which is in the process of hatching. Why would she be laying drone eggs this time of year?
Thanks for you answers, Leechmann
(http://a.imageshack.us/img686/7850/bees2010015.jpg)
(http://a.imageshack.us/img294/6337/bees2010016.jpg)
(http://a.imageshack.us/img709/7141/bees2010010.jpg)
(http://a.imageshack.us/img401/5447/bees2010013.jpg)
(http://a.imageshack.us/img185/3237/bees2010011.jpg)
Very impressive!
I suspect that bee with the yellow is a bee someone tried practicing marking a queen on. I've seen drones in my hives with red painted on their thorax recently! I practiced on some drones from one hive, then found them in all 20 of my hives in one yard!!! Guess they aren't concerned where they sleep!
Centered brood - I have bees that "chimney" too.
Drones - the queen measures the cells with her antennae before she lays her eggs. If drone size, she lays drones. If worker size, she lays worker eggs. Plus, as long as weather/temperatures hold out, the virgin queens still need to breed, so drone production continues.
Hope this helps
I just read that it is the "black bees" that lay the drone eggs, is that not true?
Just got in from taking the honey from the bees. I was able to get the 6 hives in the last picture you see, done today. So I got home with 39 medium supers full of honey. I weighed the meds and they range in weight from 45 to 50 lbs. I then weighed an empty super with drawn combs and it weighed 13 lbs. So, I figure that my meds weigh between 30 to 35 lbs.. 6 hives at 30 lb average is 1170 lbs of honey.
I have 16 other hives to do, but they are in different locations and didn't do as well.
Leechmann
that is a great haul. I feel like charlie brown trick or treating. All i got is a rock :(
sounds like you have had a good year!
nice pictures. the focus is a bit odd for me.
you even look like a beekeeper with the slightly soiled pollinator's jacket and jeans. for me... it makes the pictures less staged.
did the yellow smudge look more like paint or pollen?
given the time required from egg laying to hatching the emerging drones reflect more how the hive was doing 30 days ago than now.
Quote from: tecumseh on August 29, 2010, 07:46:50 PM
nice pictures. the focus is a bit odd for me.
you even look like a beekeeper with the slightly soiled pollinator's jacket and jeans. for me... it makes the pictures less staged.
did the yellow smudge look more like paint or pollen?
given the time required from egg laying to hatching the emerging drones reflect more how the hive was doing 30 days ago than now.
I'm not sure what your saying. If you think these pictures are not authentic, then shame on you. As far as the yellow spot on the bee, I'm thinking it was pollen, now. As far as the drones hatching late in the season, that is why I made a point of it to ask, as I thought it was too late in the season for this to be taking place. I think what your seeing is that the picture of me standing on the ladder is distorted, making the boxes look shallower than what they are. I think what happened is that I had to rotate this picture and it became distorted in the process.
Leechman
That's one of my bees! I mark all their thoraxes with yellow paint, I've been looking for that bee for two days now! What a traitor, you can have her. Uhh!
Love the pic of the hatching drones!
...JP