Flying with a friend?

Dabbler · May 10, 2016, 08:17:46 AM

Installed my first NUC 30Apr and have been doing my best to limit hive incursions to once a week.
To help satisfy my "urges" I regularly go back after work just to watch. Entrance activity is brisk and the girls are bringing in pollen and all seems well so far.

However last night (~6 pm) I noticed that instead of a regular stream of arrivals, the returning bees seem to land in groups of about 5 bees with a pause and then another group of ~5 bees. This went on for some time.

They are not going on cleansing flights so I will avoid the obvious " going to the ladies room in a group" joke (but then I just did it anyway

).

Has anyone else seen this? Is this group foraging/return normal activity? Do they go into a holding pattern waiting to land and then group up?

GSF · May 10, 2016, 08:42:27 AM

What time does it get dark? Was there a rain coming? These things will encourage the bees to return to the hive. When it happens you'll see them pouring back in.

Dabbler · May 10, 2016, 08:50:28 AM

Sunset is 8:26. No impending rain, but it does still get cold at night (about 33F last night).

It wasn't the numbers returning that made me raise an eyebrow but the consistent ~5 bee grouping.
I didn't know if there was a reason for this or if I was just seeing patterns that weren't really there.

bwallace23350 · May 10, 2016, 09:09:01 AM

I have not noticed that with my bees yet. I have noticed that about 30 minutes before night the hive has no activity though. Maybe they were rushing home.

Psparr · May 10, 2016, 10:28:57 AM

Maybe it's a bad neighborhood and their staying together for protection. Maybe they could carry some form of protection. Pepper spray maybe. I'm sure they'll think of something. Wink.

PhilK · May 10, 2016, 08:01:38 PM

I've seen a similar thing but with bigger groups. Around 20 bees will land, then none for a while, then 30 or 15 etc. Happens during the day sometimes too. I assume it's bees at a similar forage source or forage distance?

little john · May 11, 2016, 04:19:42 AM

Quote from: Dabbler on May 10, 2016, 08:50:28 AM
It wasn't the numbers returning that made me raise an eyebrow but the consistent ~5 bee grouping.
I didn't know if there was a reason for this or if I was just seeing patterns that weren't really there.

It could be an example of the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon, which is an illusion in which something which has recently been drawn to one's attention then seems to appear with improbable frequency shortly afterwards.

So you first notice 5 bees - that makes an impression on you - and you then begin to notice '5 bees' everywhere. I first experienced this when my brother bought a red Ford, back in the 70's. I immediately started seeing red Ford's everywhere I went - but I'd never noticed any before that. Very curious.

What I have noticed on those hives I have with landing boards, that some bees form groups on return from foraging and conduct 'Union Meetings' - presumably to discuss the day's events and whatever happens to be newsworthy. Whereas others head straight in to unload their efforts. Fascinating creatures.

LJ

Hops Brewster · May 12, 2016, 04:19:27 PM

While I was watching my hives yesterday afternoon before going in for inspection, I noticed traffic was slow, very few bees coming and going. In fact, there was a period of about 20 seconds when I did not see any bees come in to land or leave any of my 3 hives, just a few hanging out on the landing. Then suddenly a 'cloud' of approximately 2 dozen bees came in all together for a nearly vertical approach to land. They each made adjustments and went to the entrance to the hive of their choice. It seemed to be close to equal how they divided up between the colonies. After that normal traffic resumed with bees coming and going at a fairly constant rate.

I put it down to being a simple fluctuation in traffic flow. Interesting.