New package queen status unknown

duryeafarms · April 14, 2013, 11:37:30 AM

Hi,

I am just starting out with a single TBH and received my package of bees yesterday. When I took the queen cage out, it was broken. Looked to me like the staples that attached the hanging strap fractured the wood and opened a big gap around the end, enough that there were workers jammed up inside the cage. Of course my first fear is without enough time to accept the new queen, they killed her. I took the screen off the cage and moved bees away thinking I'd find her there, but no. At this point, I had to assume she was down in the box dead or alive. There was certainly a queen in there somewhere as they were all clustered around the cage before removal. I decided the only thing to do was hive them and hope for the best. Once I got them in, some workers were sending out the "queen is in here" signal with their abdomens up and fanning their wings. I figured this could happen even if she was dead, just the smell would produce the behavior. Now I have a situation making queen status determination difficult. Spotting her visually on the bottom of the hive right now would require opening the whole thing. Not something I'm crazy about, but it might be the best option. I can wait for them to build some comb and look for her on the comb or for eggs in about a week, but the time gap between determining they are queenless and getting a replacement may be too great. I'll probably contact the vendor tomorrow and explain. I'd hope they would send me a new queen.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Steel Tiger · April 14, 2013, 02:37:07 PM

Tough situation. When you call the vendor, I would just tell them the queen was missing, without going into specifics. The box was there, no queen inside...please fix it.

asprince · April 14, 2013, 03:00:45 PM

I would call them but wait before asking them to send a new queen. You could end up with two in the hive there by wasting one. She could be there just waiting on a place to lay.

Steve

duryeafarms · April 14, 2013, 08:10:48 PM

My concern is how long I can afford to wait. Is it too long between waiting for comb to be drawn so she can can lay, deciding there isn't a queen and getting a replacement? Not to mention the couple of days to gain acceptance. That could take 10 days or more.

asprince · April 14, 2013, 08:25:56 PM

Feed them and she could be laying in less time than it will take to get a replacement queen.

Steve

duryeafarms · April 14, 2013, 09:35:12 PM

I'm feeding them for sure. I guess patience is required. I've seen youtube videos of TBH with 7 bars of comb built in 10 days. Surely if mine build out even a couple by the end of the week, there should be eggs.

Nervous Nelly Newbie :)

duryeafarms · April 22, 2013, 02:04:24 PM

A happy conclusion to the queen mystery! I opened the hive on Friday and found her on the third top bar. I looked for eggs in the comb they had built (not a lot, but in process) and didn't see any. I have to admit, looking for eggs through a veil isn't the easiest thing. I'm checking again today, maybe I'll see some.

sterling · April 22, 2013, 05:01:12 PM

I would wait a few days and let them settle in and let her start laying good. To much disturbance to a new package isn't good.

Kathyp · April 22, 2013, 05:06:11 PM

yes, let them settle. then, when you do go out, take some pictures of the comb and into the cells. what you don't see through the veil, you'll be able to pick up on your computer later.

it's hard to be patient, but you need to let them get settled and let her get laying well. a few days will do more good than harm.

buzzbee · April 22, 2013, 10:47:51 PM

Duryeafarms.
When you do go back in to look again,
1) Keep your frames held over the hive in case the queen would fall from the one your holding,
2) Keep the sun to your back if it's shining It will make it easier to see the egg at the bottom of newly drawn wax cells. Brian Bray used to say it's like looking for a grain of rice at the bottom of a trash can.
3) If possible take a picture with a digital camera. You can then spend more time looking into the new wax and expanding it on your computer. You may see something you missed otherwise. :)

Michael Bush · April 23, 2013, 09:29:04 AM

The fact that they show so much interest in the cage would indicate there used to be a queen in there and the cork fell out. Odds are she is loose and in the cluster.

duryeafarms · April 23, 2013, 12:29:22 PM

For any that are interested, this is what the end of the queen cage looked like when I got it (if the image uploads). I pulled the screen up once I saw it was broken to take the other bees out. Thank goodness they accepted her despite the early entrance. I was planning to direct release her per Michael Bush's recommendation anyway, but it would have been nice to know she was at least living before doing so.