What’s going on in there anyway?
Nest
Ah, natural comb.
After orienting to their new situation, bees start building their nest. The cluster settles down in the first third of the hive, nearest the entrance. And comb constructions begins. Initially, the comb’s extent is controlled by the cluster’s size and it’s ability to keep the nest warm enough. But once some comb is available and brood rearing is underway, bees expand their comb building activities as they can control their hive environment better. When new bees hatch increasing the population, comb building advances beyond the cluster’s physical boundaries.
The bees build a nest structure that enhances colony function and optimal survival. It can be divided into three parts.
Broodnest Core
Near the entrance and toward the bottom of the comb is the broodnest core. Cell size is smaller here than anywhere else in the hive. The bees keep the broodnest core open for broodrearing. And they cluster there when they overwinter.
The broodnest core is the central focus of nest activity. Everything radiates out from the broodnest core.
Broodnest
Surrounding the broodnest core is an area of larger cell sizes. Cell size gradually increases away from the core area, with the largest broodnest cell sizes next to the top bars above the core and away from the entrance.
Honey and pollen are overwintered in the broodnest. This food fuels colony expansion during late winter/early spring before the bees can freely forage. As broodnest food is consumed, empty cells become available and are used for more worker brood. The largest cells are emptied last. And are used to rear drones which are necessary for late spring/early summer swarming.
Honey Storage Area
Beyond the broodnest is the honey storage area. Honey, beyond that needed for survival, is stored here. Cell size and comb orientation are chaotic in the honey storage area. The bees will move honey in and out of the honey storage area depending upon the needs in the broodnest. It’s this area that is harvested by the beekeeper.
You can read more of my nest observations here and here.
Behavior
It’s no small task for a few pounds of bees to build a functional nest. Raise a large overwintering population. And store enough food to overwinter. All in just a few months. For the bees to succeed, the location has to be optimal. The bees must make the right colony decisions quickly. And few problems should face the colony.
Not all colonies survive.
Progression
This is how one broodnest progressed at weekly intervals:
First week. The bees are on top bars 1-9.
Second Week. The bees are on top bars 1-9.
Third Week. The bees are on top bars 1-9.
Fourth Week. The bees are on top bars 1-9.
Fifth Week. The bees are on top bars 1-12.
Sixth Week. The bees are on top bars 1-12.
Eighth Week. The bees are on top bars 1-14.
Tenth Week. The bees are on top bars 1-18. The first 14 top bar combs are fully drawn.
Disturbing News
It’s so tempting to get into a new top bar hive and watch what’s going on. But that first week is a critical time. It takes time for the bees to settle down and get organized. Major interruptions before they get settled sets them back.
Much relates to the queen behavior. Sometimes she retreats to the darkest area of the hive and hides. That’s away from the entrance toward the hive’s rear. If she stays there, the bees begin drawing comb at the hive’s far end. This produces a confused broodnest structure. The bees use lots of time up before moving forward toward the entrance. There, they’ll set up a proper broodnest.
Sometimes the bees supersede or immediately kill the queen if disturbed. Sometimes they abscond.
It’s best not to disturb them during the first week. After a few days, a quick look into the hive without smoke, by removing a few empty top bars at the hive’s far end, won’t hurt.
Once the bees start gathering pollen and raising brood, an extensive broodnest examination is ok. Africanized bees may be an exception. I’ve had AHBs in Lang hives, abscond when inspected too often.
Don’t be afraid to inspect a top bar hive. Give them a chance to settle. Then get into the broodnest. Sometimes the bees draw comb across the top bars and not down their length. Early corrections saves much head ache later.
Great blog! Nice to meet a Wyoming beekeeper- a rare breed indeed. My parents owned a ranch by Pavillion and hosted a number of hives, accepting in return that premium alfalfa honey you speak of. I was sad when she told me the beekeeper had no honey at all last year, so I’ve been researching backyard beekeeping–perhaps I can give something back to those little critters who gave me such a treat back in the day. I live in Evanston, and can count on two hands the number of bees I see during the summer. Do you think it’s possible to keep bees where the elevation is over 6700 feet?
By: Marie on 01/05/2010
at 8:38 pm
Hi Marie,
I’m a Riverton boy and have spent much of my youth fishing, hunting, ice skating and swimming just down the road from your farm. You might remember the Schaffers, Krause, Miller, Colva beekeepers from the area. Lots of great memories there. And some of my favorite memories of thousands of migrating birds in the fall.\
Do you remember the honey house behind the beanery? I’ll bet I’m dating myself now :>)
And I spent some time in an apple orchard, north of the Lake, while my father remolded a farm house there. Remember how large the Carp would grow in the drainage ditches around there?
I don’t know much about Evanston beekeeping. Most of my Wyoming experience was around the Winds and not that far southwest. But I’ve communicated, in the past, with an Evanston beekeeper. Think he had a few hives, so it’s possible to keep bees there. I don’t remember his name or have any contact info for him now.
Elevation? The Millers have run commercial bees from Pavilion west to Dubois. Most of their bees are around Crowheart and in the small, irrigated fields father west. Much of the lower valley is about 6400msl and increases to almost 7000msl in the upper ends of those valleys nearest the mountains.
I’ve looked at the WyGISC Data Server. It’s a great resource. You might want to play with it. Zoom in on Evanston and use the Imagery – Color Infrared – Utm Zone 12 West to start with. It will show you the irrigated and agricultural areas. Then add hydrology, etc.
Near Evanston, there’s a limited amount of agriculture, but you might be able to find a good location that would support a few hives. They could take advantage of the early spring trees in town, the creek bottom later in the spring, and ag fields later in the summer.
If a hive of honeybees is problematic, Blue Orchard Bees are a neat alternative. No honey there. But they are neat, easily kept creatures who actually pollinate early spring flowers better than a hive of bees. And they’re docile and rarely sting.
Let me know what you think.
Regards – Dennis Murrell – BWrangler
By: Dennis Murrell on 01/06/2010
at 7:18 pm