I have a nuc that survived the winter. These bees were queened with a buckfast hybrid last summer and the bees were reasonably friendly through the fall.
Now that they are active again, they are much hotter than my other hives which I work without protection. Even with smoke and a veil I was stung probably 5 times and the guards continued to harass me 25 feet from the hive. This aggressive behavior has occurred under a variety of weather and times of day.
Now, it goes without saying I will requeen this nuc and I have a couple queens on order. My question is whether others have seen a hive that has changed its behavior with the same queen?
Yes maybe the bees were having a bad day, so much can contribute to them being hot. Also are external pest bothering them maybe wildlife or people. Also time of day and also the more bees a hive has the more guards may be there to chase you around. Also is it a dearth? if so less bees foraging means more to chase you. Or it may just be a hot queen and its time to requeen her. Things to ponder
Keith
Not sure what you mean by a buckfast hybrid, but there are plenty of accounts out there of 2nd generation queens from Buckfast stock that are hot.
QuoteMy question is whether others have seen a hive that has changed its behavior with the same queen?
Quite common, but usually is season related. In general, bees seem to be less aggressive in the spring/summer than in the fall.
I do plan to give her a number of second chances...paid enough for her!! They are on syrup and pollen patties now and taking it down.
She's a 2 year old Bee Weaver queen.
Also, in addition to the above, if you go back to basic 101, you will find that the bees can have different fathers.
Plus could also just be having a bad bee day, cold day, humid day, or heaven for bid You smelt wrong to them [ it does happen ]
Bee-Bop
you may not have the same queen in there. how big is the hive? sometimes just splitting them helps a lot, although it's a bit early for that, i think.
where is your syrup? is it attracting bees from other hives? even though robbing is not so common in spring, they can get testy if they are being invaded.
It is a two-story med nuc and appears to small to split. The syrup is in inverted mason jars, fed through the top and the entrance is reduced. Sounds like I ought to give this hive a little time to re-acclimate before passing final judgment.
Two story medium nuc, that's a pretty small hive, they shouldn't be that vicious but once you remove all possible variables hopefully they calm down.
I have seen really aggressive small colonies but its not the norm. Usually the bigger the britches, the meaner the... :-D
...JP