JayPoc
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Location: Virginia, The mountains Zone 6a/6b

New package, queen present, but there's a supercedure cell

I've asked for opinions from my local beekeepers association (I'm a member), but I figure more opinions can't hurt. I'm a novice.

Backstory is I installed a package on Easter Sunday. The queen was released by last Thursday, when I removed the empty cage. Upon my inspection today, I saw plenty of capped and uncapped brood, a healthy queen, AND an emergency/supercedure cell. I think I'm going to cull the emergency cell and see if the current queen is now making everyone happy. Thoughts?

here's the good queen:
Image

But here's the supercedure cell:
Image

imafan26
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Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

If you have a healthy queen that is not sick or have any other problems the queen will take care of the cell. Since it takes 24 or 25 days for queen to emerge from a 4 day old egg and Easter Sunday was 12 days ago, the supercedure cell was probably started when the hive was queenless. Removing the supercedure cell would probably be o.k. too.

JayPoc
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Location: Virginia, The mountains Zone 6a/6b

So...I just learned a valuable albeit slightly painful lesson. I had been working my bees without smoke or the gloves for the most part, because they've been very calm since they've been here. Yesterday, I went out to remove that queen cell. It was hot here, and when I opened the hive the bees sounded much louder than usual. I should have gone back for my smoker and gloves, but I soldiered ahead. I got hit twice on the hand, and they were harassing me pretty good. And I'm sure I crushed a few bees in my haste to get everything back together. Hopefully, I didn't squish my queen....especially now that I removed a queen pupa that was in the works...

imafan26
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Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

The bees are more aggressive now. Even our usually docile bees are getting that way because the honey flow has started; they are building brood, and some are looking like they are close to swarming. When the hives have a lot of honey and brood to protect and especially when the hive gets crowded, the girls get a bit touchy. It is worse if you try to disturb them on a day that is cold and wet. More bees will be at home since the foragers don't like to go out in inclement weather or when it is cold.

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jal_ut
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Quote: " I should have gone back for my smoker and gloves, but"

When going to work bees, always use the smoker! Just a quick puff at the guard bees on the entrance, then crack the lid a bit and puff some smoke in the crack. Now this is important, sit the smoker down and watch the birds for two minutes before opening the hive. The reason for the waiting is that when the bees smell smoke they will go fill up on honey in preparation for leaving the burning hive. Well a bee full of honey is a gentle bee.

JayPoc
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Joined: Wed Nov 28, 2012 12:00 pm
Location: Virginia, The mountains Zone 6a/6b

So...for those who are following along my first adventures in bee-having (I'm choosing bee-having over beekeeping for now)...an update.

I went into the hive for the first time in about 8 days on Monday. I had removed the supersedure cell when I was last in there. Looks like my current queen is making a decent if not great brood pattern...

Image

Unfortunately, the bees still don't seem to like her. As you can see in the next few photos, they've made at least 6 or 7 more supersedure cells.

Image

Image

Image

What is happening to me is happening with several others here who got packages from the same folks on the same day. The "theory" is that these new hives have been going along for some time without new, emerging workers...which makes the bees think they have a bad queen. In reality, it's just the lag associated with getting the queen out and laying.

So what I think I'm going to do, based on the advice of a few folks in my local association, is go ahead and let them rear some new queens. I've going to remove all but 2 or 3 of these queen cells and then let nature take its course. I understand that the new queen and the old queen will probably coexist for a period of time, and if the new queen comes back well mated there will be only a minimal disruption to my progress. If in a few weeks I determine that I don't have a laying queen, I'll requeen with a local queen as they should be more abundant at that time.

Sound like a plan?



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