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| Chillin' on the smoker |
After having read more from the NCBA's Mentor Blogs, I decided I should probably check the bees sooner rather than later. They burned through 8 cups of sugar water in less than 48hours. Knowing that they don't have a lot of comb built, I wanted to check to be sure the girls aren't crowding the queen out by hoarding syrup.
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| Newly capped brood & pollen |
Inside the hive I found more and deeper comb that I'd seen last weekend. And as you can see above, a lot of the brood has been capped. If you look closely you can still see a few larvae. This was exciting for me to see, as I've been waiting for it to happen. It also means I'll have my first new bees in the hive soon!
I also wanted to find the queen, if for no other reason just to get a look at her. I'd been advised that I'd see her by the behavior of the bees around her. I inspected frames and saw new eggs and new honey. I am even pretty sure I saw a drone. Then on my second to last frame, THERE SHE WAS!!
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| Carniolan Queen Bee in the hive |
And I thought, "Oh yeah, how could I miss her. She's the big black one that all the others get out of the way for." After I had spotted her it was easy to see how the other bees tried to keep out of her way.
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| Apis Mellifera Carnica Queen inspecting comb |
I could tell she was inspecting the comb for empty cells to lay more eggs in. She wasn't having much luck, so I'll probably wait a few days before I give them any more syrup. Hopefully this will slow their storage, and give them time to keep building comb. It was a huge relief to spot her and a I feel confident I could find her again.
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| Carniolan Queen Bee |
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