Honeybee_ Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper - C. Marina Marchese [45]
Robbing behavior is considered common any time there is a lack of nectar, but rogue bees might also try to invade a strange hive as the result of sloppy beekeeping practices. On occasion, for example, I have kept the hive open too long during an inspection, thus advertising its contents to any old honeybees in the area. Simply dripping sugar solution near the hive could serve as an open invitation to unwanted guests. But honeybees are nothing if not clever and organized. For what is a queendom without a respectable army? And, indeed, guard bees are stationed at the entrance of the hive to protect the colony from enemies. As worker bees enter the hive, the guard bees wait in line at the entrance and smell each entering bee. If a bee’s pheromones are not recognized, the bee will be denied entrance. The only way a rogue or drifter bee may gain entrance to new hive is if the bee approaches bearing a gift in the form of nectar or pollen.
Clearly, a strange bee had tried to enter my hive, and a brawl had broken out. As I stood at the entrance, I could actually see several bees aggressively bolting up to the entrance in an attempt to push pass the guards. In fact, the newcomers were not honeybees at all. They were yellow jackets, and their motive was obvious: to get inside the hive and indulge in the honey. I had a full-fledged robbery on my hands.
A few of my own honeybees were locked in one-on-one mortal combat with these thieves, rolling around the hive entrance and then falling to the grass, but never once breaking their combative embrace. All six legs wrapped around the foe, each bee or yellow jacket tried to sting the combatant to death. I was immensely proud of my honeybees for valiantly defending their turf. I felt like it was my duty to join in and help. So I grabbed the nearest twig and began flicking yellow jackets off the hive entrance. I further attempted to separate the brawlers. I hated the idea of my honeybees potentially giving their lives to defend their hive. But despite their courage and my feeble but well-meaning aid, the robbing continued. The next day I noticed what appeared to be crumbs at the entrance of the hive. I could not image how this pile of grit had found its way onto the entrance. When I bent down to peek inside the hive entrance, I could see where the robbers had forced their way in and uncapped some of the honeycomb. Those crumbs were actually the wax cappings that had been chewed up and left behind by the robbers, who’d most likely filled their own bellies with the stolen honey. Nature, I had discovered, could be cruel, and it made me furious.
I managed to shut down the continuation of this particular robbery for one day by closing up the entrance of the hive with a wad of grass. You are basically calling a time-out. Nobody goes into the hive, and nobody comes out. After one day, you can remove the grass. Hopefully, the robbers on the outside will have given up, and the ones trapped inside have been stung to death. If you do not catch the robbery early and it escalates, the result can be most unfortunate. Honeybees need that stored-up honey when there is a dearth of nectar and especially going into the winter months. Over the next few weeks I kept an especially watchful eye on the activity around my hive entrance.
PREPARING THE HIVES FOR OVERWINTERING
Preparing your honeybee hives in the fall for the upcoming winter is as important as taking care of them throughout the summer. A hive that has been properly prepared for a long, cold winter has a better chance of survival until the spring. As the fall arrives and foraging activity winds down, bees prepare to cluster.
During the winter months, the colony drops down to approximately 25,000 bees. Most noticeably, the drone population dwindles. Since the only contribution the drones make to the colony is to mate with a queen, their presence