I did my weekly inspection. I have two deeps that are loaded and the bottom deep is very thick and congested. Upper is full but not as congested. Med Super has been on for one week, just begining to draw out comb. Saw lots of pupae, and capped larvae. Not sure I saw eggs. Lots of capped brood. Also a few boards of honey. Less drone capped larvae too this time. Probably less than 10% drone. Four full boards, both sides of capped brood.
Here's my conscern. I found four swarm cells and two 'cups". Two had a smooth hole on bottom and nothing inside. One had jagged hole on bottom and nothing inside. One was closed. My queen was installed this year and is a Minn Hybrid. It looks as if swarming might be getting ready. I have the super on, and I have added some shims to aid temperature as it was the hottest its been all year. I also did not see the queen, but there are lots of bees. I have been diligent in adding boxes as needed.
Any suggestions? Being a new hive they should not swarm this year, but to my untrained eye they appear to be getting ready, or not?
Are they towards the middle and upper parts of the frame? If they are, then they are supersedure cells. Along, the bottom they are swarm cells.
They sound like supercedure cells. I have heard from several beeks that some packages tend to build this on and off the first year.
And that's been my case. Hive 1 have built them a little here and there, but then they are gone the next week. Hive 2 did lose a queen, but they have one now, laying well. But here and there they build them, but the next week they are gone or in a different place.
I would tend to just let it go and see what occurs.
But I'm no expert.
Quint
Bees often build queen cells for no other reason than taking out an insurance policy.
If one had a jagged hole in it then it probably hatched and you are in that never land of waiting until a virgin mates and begins laying.
If the bees did do a supercedure it is not uncommon for them to kill the queen several days before the cells are due to hatch, this practice ensures a new queen for the hive as long as the beekeeper is wise enough not to disturb supercedure cells.
These cells are almost in the middle of the boards and more or less in the middle of both brood boxes. Since I have hybrids, if they have superceded, will the new queen be as good? If not, should i replace queen?
if she mates only with her own drones then i think she will produce the same hybrid offspring.
I always go with what I get on a supercedure the first year. If the performance is poor then I slate the hive for requeening the next spring.
Call me old fashioned but I often think beekeepers pull the triger too quick on queens they know nothing about. Chances are 50/50 that you'll get a good queen out of the process--about the same for a purchased queen.
And that remark will probably set off a whole big halabaloo over those whose knee jerk reaction is to requeen 1st and think later.
>Since I have hybrids, if they have superceded, will the new queen be as good?
What kind of hybrids?
>If she mates only with her own drones then i think she will produce the same hybrid offspring.
*IF* she does (which is unlikely) you'll get peppershot brood from all the diploid drone eggs she will lay. It would not be a good thing.
MB I have Minn. Hybrids SMR. Thanx as always. Since that time it has been raining so much, cant inspect. Have so many bees ( i peek into super)I can only presume no swarming and no lapse in brood rearing.
Minn Hygenics are just Italians, not hybrids. But the hygenic trait can be lost or watered down (since it's actually several traits) in outbreeding. Then again the ferals might have better genes anyway. :)