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Subject: Orange County, NC Beekeepers

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com>
  • To: Saundra Kirven <skirven AT pharmasset.com>
  • Cc: ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [ocba] Increased aggression
  • Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2010 16:31:02 -0400

Saundra,
 
Unfortunately, bees aren't like puppies --- they don't learn to love you with increased exposure. But increased exposure DOES help the beekeeper to "learn" the bees so that you can discover how to handle them in ways that don't "set them off." Just don't over-manipulate them to the point they become nervous and cranky. An in-hive inspection once a week is not too often for a beginner.
 
There may be at least two things going on. One is that, everything else equal, a more populous hive is going to be more defensive than a less populous hive, if for no other reason than now you have a lot more older bees and those are the ones who defend the hive.
The other thing going on right now is that the weather has been uncomfortably hot, plus we've had days where sudden thunderstorms moved in with little notice. Bees' dispositions tend to match the weather; when the weather is pleasant, so are they. When it is stormy (or they sense it is going to be), watch out.
 
Also, bees are like people: some are sweet and some are obnoxious. Since you've got 2 hives, you may be able to judge whether one is unacceptable compared to the other. Once you've ruled out weather etc. as an excuse for bad behavior, if one hive or both hives are just too mean for you then replace the queen. There's nothing at all wrong with doing that. You own them, they don't own you.
 
You may want to ask another beekeeper to come over and give an opinion on how your bees rate compared to theirs, or visit someone else's apiary and try their bees out. Then you'd have a broader basis for comparison.
 
This is supposed to be fun, so keep at it & make adjustments as needed!
 
Randall

On Mon, Jun 21, 2010 at 12:53 PM, Saundra Kirven <skirven AT pharmasset.com> wrote:

Hi all,

 

My two hives are new this year, one of them being more “established” than the other.  But we’re noticing some increased aggression in the bees as the hive grows.  Last week, I opened them to do an inspection, the first in 3 weeks, and tried to go as quickly as I could.  I used the smoker and still got 5 stings.  My husband was mowing the lawn (mid-day) and was about 20-25 feet away from the hives and he got stung on the back of the neck.  We really try to leave them to do their own thing. Perhaps they’re not accustomed to human interaction.  Is this normal?  Should we be interacting with them more?

 

 

Saundra Kirven                                           

Clinical Operations Manager                              

Pharmasset, Inc.                                              

Phone:  (919) 287-4250 x117                             

Fax:      (919) 287-4259                                     

email:  skirven AT pharmasset.com                       

 



 


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