Dead Bees everywhere

[Ray Hall]

I have two hives in my backyard. This is my first year to have my own hives. They have had there ups and downs this summer. This evening I went out back to check them out just before dusk. The one hive is doing good. The second hive has dead bees everywhere. On the ground are hundreds. The ones at the entrance of the hive are either dead or acting like the have been sprayed with some thing. They are twiching and or  moving very slow.

I opened the top cover of both hives and the good hive has a very heathly buzzing sound.  The second hive has no buzzing sound when I open the top. They acted as if I wasn't there.

Please help

[Brian D. Bray]

Was it drone kill off?  Nows the time when hives will kill off the drones in order to get rid of the useless drain on stores prior to winter.
It is possible that some of the bees got into a nectar or pollen source that had been sprayed by some well meaning gardener.

[ConfedMarine]

Here in Lynchburg most of the drones in your hives should have been dead by now. Yesterday I did a top to bottom inspection on my 3 hives and saw one drone. I would guess and say either spray or the strong hive went on a honey robbing mission on your second hive. I had one hive, little aggressive by nature, that tried to rob another one of my hives and there where dead bees covering the ground at the base of the second hive's entrance.

[NCBee]

Have they been robbed.  Perhaps the hive that is doing well has robbed the other one, and the dead bees are the casualties.

Just a thought