Under Attack!!

[Highlandsfreedom]

Hello everyone so sorry I have let life get in the way here.  I have a question about robbing bees.   I was gone for about a week and my wife told me that the hive I have in the backyard was under attack and it looked like the hive was swarming out but there were bees at the entrance fighting and WWIII going on in the sky.  Well she didnt do anything and this went on for 3 days!! I came home to see the fighting and thought for sure that the hive was a dead out and these were just robber bees from other hives fighting so I went into the hive at night when it was below 50 degrees to see what was going on. Before I could take the inner cover off I felt the heat coming out from the hole.  I decided the girls were still alive and strong so I closed up shop and covered up the entrance with lace so no one in and no one out.  The next day there were about 50 or so bees flying around ALL DAY trying to get in but the house was locked up!! :-D  It has been 2 days we are on the third since I locked the hive up but there are still bees trying to get into the hive today!!  The few questions I have are how long can the hive be locked up before the girls need to come out to cleanse and how can I get rid of these annoing other bees?  This is going on in the city of Dallas where we are in a drought and I fed my girls this fall so they have plenty. 

Thanks for any advice,
Dave

[iddee]

If only 50, they are likely house bees that stayed out over night. I would let them in and watch them for awhile. Then install a robber screen.

[jaseemtp]

Dave are you sure they were being robbed out?  The past several days we have had some very warm weather, it was in the 70s here yesterday.  I have had alot of activity out of all my hives, to the point I started putting out some dry pollen sub to give them something to do.

[Michael B]

Mine are doing a lot of flying here Southwest of Fort Worth too! Warm weather seems to be getting them out!

[Highlandsfreedom]

Yes they were balling and there are dead bees everywhere.  Also there is alot of wax pisces all along the entrance.  They were bumping our heads at 50 feet from the hive the bees that were all around today flew away at dusk. They can not get in.....but my bees can't get out.

[jaseemtp]

That stinks, the only thing I could suggest is to reduce the entrance down to one bee space.  I have not used the robber screens so I can not speak for them.  We are having warm weather and our bees are going to want to fly, closing them in just makes them want to get out more.

[Highlandsfreedom]

Yah I was thinking that if I could close them up for a few days to get them to look else where...but mother nature has never been nice right... I have to just see what happens...

[T Beek]

Yep, reduce the entrance (s) to a defensible size (1-2 bees) ASAP. 

Next time you see such behavior indicating robbing try setting up a sprinkler over the victim colony.  A wet blanket thrown over it will stop it fast as well.  The main thing is to STOP the attack, right now.  Letting it go can result in a dead colony, depending on the strength of victim hive.

In N/W Wisconsin my bees sometimes 'can't leave to releave themselves' for MONTHS, so blocking them off for a few days won't harm them too much.

thomas

[AllenF]

I leave reducers on all year long.   I also leave screen bottoms open also.

[BjornBee]

I leave reducers on all year long.   I also leave screen bottoms open also.

Same here.

[Old Blue]

This sounds just like how things go where I live believe it or not.  Basically its all happy buzz buzz until the party's over.  When the last of the nectar dries up and the robbing starts, it's like flipping a switch.  The demeaner of all of my hives changes almost overnight.  Hives that I can open all year long that just ignore me, all of a sudden become mean and nasty.  My robbing isn't large scale gang fight style but it's definately noticeable with low numbers of scuffles on the landing board and in the dirt when they fall off of the landing board.

I have always found that I can reduce the amount of fighting by reducing the entrance but not quite completely eliminate it.  This year I made and installed robber screens and opened my entrances all the way.  I went full open because I run solid bottom boards and as of late my condensate has increased a lot with the lower temps (don't laugh, we're hitting the thirties a lot lately at night with frosted rooftops and a little windsheild scraping).  This is the first time I have used the robber screens and I wish I had done it sooner, they work as advertised.  If I were you, I would put robber screen on and I think your troubles will be over.

Old Blue
Punishing taxation with no representation in
Kali-bone-ya

[Highlandsfreedom]

Well I was able to go back into the hive yesterday.   5+ frames of pollen,50 lbs of honey, propolis everywhere!!!! Not a single honey bee?? There were about 20 or so hatching all half way with their heads out of the cells but that was it!!!!!! Im sad.......

[T Beek]

Total bummer man.  We're there Any dead bees?  Or was hive just empty of bees besides the larva?

thomas

[AliciaH]

Sorry to hear that!  Was this the only hive at this location?  Can you start again with a split from another hive?

[Highlandsfreedom]

Yah not a single bee...... Plenty of chewed open cells and wax everywhere!! Yes I will split bees from another hive but I think this is my way into a top bar hive!!! Looking on the bright side of life...

[T Beek]

Although I no longer have one, working a TBH taught me to become a more observant beek with my Langs.  

Now I've got Langs and a couple Long Hives, all w/ interchangeable foundationless medium frames.  

The best of both world for me.

thomas

[Michael Bush]

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesrobbing.htm