moving splits - how long to wait before driving across town?

[chickweed]

What are folks' opinions about how long to wait before moving a new colony/split to a new site? Should the split and move be done all at once so as to get the disturbances over with, or should the split be allowed to sit for a few days or a week before loading it onto the truck to move it across town?  I'm sure there will be varying opinions, so consider this a survey.  Thanks!

[Michael Bush]

Is this because you need them in the other place or because you don't want them to drift?  If you're moving because you don't want them to drift, do it immediately... or not at all and shake in some extra bees.  If  you're moving because you want them in the new location, then I'd do it immediately, again, to prevent drifting.

[chickweed]

The bees are almost all nurse bees - I didn't see any drift. And the new splits are going to new beekeepers. Just wondered more about repeated disruption versus a longer disruption all at once. The drive across town will shake them up and throw into chaos for another day, I suspect. Making the split seems to me like a major trauma to the hive - I'm skeptical of beekeepers' claims that the bees can adapt to anything we ignorant blundering humans do to them.

[Michael Bush]

>The bees are almost all nurse bees - I didn't see any drift.

Then you weren't looking hard enough...

>And the new splits are going to new beekeepers. Just wondered more about repeated disruption versus a longer disruption all at once.

Always better to get it all over with at once.  Repeated disruptions are worse than one bigger one.

> The drive across town will shake them up and throw into chaos for another day, I suspect.

Of course.  But they are probably still recovering from the split.

> Making the split seems to me like a major trauma to the hive

Disruption, yes.  Trauma?  No.

> - I'm skeptical of beekeepers' claims that the bees can adapt to anything we ignorant blundering humans do to them.

Obvouisly they can't.  :)