blades of grass and nectar flow

[fr0sty]

Anyone else amused by putting blades of grass by the entrance and watching the bees fly like 20+ft away?

My hive was just started this year and I'm starting to see some bees washboarding, which I think is a good sign the population is growing and the hive is healthy.

and also,

does the end of the nectar flow mean the bees are feeding off stored food and nothing new is coming in? or does it mean that there's no surplus coming in? I see my bees still coming back with some pollen so I assume there's also nectar coming in.

[bassman1977]

Anyone else amused by putting blades of grass by the entrance and watching the bees fly like 20+ft away?

Not so much blades of grass but come fall when they start carting drones off, alive, by their wings, it's rather humorous, especially when you start thinking about what the bees might be saying to the unfortunate.  "You've been freeloading around here long enough, now let's see how you do on your own!".

It's also fun to watch them cleaning out carcasses from inside the hive.  "Bring out your dead!".

does the end of the nectar flow mean the bees are feeding off stored food and nothing new is coming in? or does it mean that there's no surplus coming in? I see my bees still coming back with some pollen so I assume there's also nectar coming in.

Depends. There could be minor nectar producers that the bees are hitting but they might not be bringing it in as much as a major flow.  I'm not sure about the with pollen comes nectar theory.  Someone else might know better.  I have seen bees bringing in loads of pollen when I haven't really seen much for flowers.  Typically I notice this in late fall after the goldenrod is through.

[David Stokely]

A week or so ago I watched a worker carry away a dead bee from within the hive.  It was easy to watch her silhouetted against the evening sky.  She carried the dead bee until she flew out of sight.  I wanted to see her drop it, but she never did.  I think she was easily across the neighbor's yard.  I could see her for a long long ways.  It surprised me.  I have no idea why she carried the carcass so far away before dropping it.

[Eshu]

Bassman is right with "Depends".

Sometimes a flow will end so abruptly that the bess will start emptying supers.  Usually it means that only enough nectar is coming in that very little is being stored or all of it goes to the brood nest.  There is a whole continuum of possibilities.

Pollen coming in doesn't necessarily mean nectar is coming in also.