I had a day off work today so I was able to go and check out me hive nice and early (I normally leave for work very early in the morning) and I saw these little things off to one side of the entrance. I'm just wondering if it is something I need to worry about or is it just part of their normal house keeping.
Thanks
Stan
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Looks like old mummies from chalk brood? Can't really tell details from the photo.
that was my thought. if it's that few, it's no big deal. keep track. chalkbrood is fungal and usually self limiting, but in some cases it can be bad. some people say ventilate, but there has been some written, and i found this true for me, that getting the heat up in the hive is better.
that means having only a small bottom entrance and no top opening. it might cause a lot of bearding if you are hot, but it seemed to do the trick for me in the past.
are you in a wet area, or has it been wet?
anyway, do a little research on chalkbrood and see if this fits.
Looks like dead bees which thrown off the hive. Keep to monitor the situation.
Looks like chalk brood, bad weather, or not enough bees to keep the brood nest warm.
The dust from chalk brood is one of the things from a hive that can make you very ILL. :-X
Don't dump it in you bee yard it can spread to the other hives.
mvh Edward :-P
Those are chalkbrood mummies. The white ones usually haven't developed spores yet but the black ones have and can cause the disease to spread faster. Keep an eye on this hive to make sure the bees are taking care of the problem. You will usually see this during cool wet weather in the spring.