Great Ball of Bees

At the beginning of September I had an evening shift at work. Sometime around 6pm I had the following text conversation occurred with my husband-

j: Did you check the bees today?

me: Yup. They looked fine around noon.

j: They are flying around like crazy and seem upset. There is a ball of bees on the ground.

me: A ball of bees???

j: Yes. A baseball sized ball of bees on the ground in front of the hive. Other bees are flying around and it is getting dark out.

90314 ball of bees on the ground in front of the hive

 

 

Well, that got my attention! So, in between helping students find textbooks and classrooms, I investigated what a "ball of bees" might mean.(Sure wish I could have called my Dad!) I also posted to the Northern New Jersey Bee Association FB page to see if any of the experts were paying attention and could help.

My post did generate some comments. Many from a guy who is anti-treatment of any kind who had decided that my problem was because I had just begun treating my bees for varroa mites. Others who just comment on anything that gets posted and some actually helpful responses. People did tell me to find out what was in the ball and, if the queen was there, put her back into the hive tonight. don't leave it all until the morning.

So when I got home from work, Jim and I suited up, went to the hive with flashlights in our hands and gently poked around at the ball of bees. Sure enough, there was the queen in the middle of the pile. We scooped her up, brought her to the hive entrance and she walked right back in. About 30 minutes later, the hive was quiet and everyone was in for the night. Next morning, totally normal.

Such hive drama! The following day I called the State Bee Inspector to ask his advice. I have learned that, if you ask 2 beekeepers a question, you will get 3 right answers! The Inspector didn't know what to think but he did tell me to leave the hive alone for a couple of weeks and then do a thorough inspection, looking specifically for eggs and brood. Finding that will tell me if the queen is ok.

Correction- In an earlier post I mentioned how much the bees love the American Chestnut Tree catkins. since that post, I learned that my trees are Chinese Chestnut trees not American Chestnut. The bees love them just the same!

Next post- Two weeks later, the inspection!