# One more dead bee question...?



## XayInIowa (May 9, 2011)

My hive was doing well in January, and I checked it today and found them all dead. We have been trying to figure out what may have caused it, and I'm a little confused. There were some bees who died inside the comb, but they had plenty of food. The rest looked as if they all were frozen in time, in varying positions around the brood comb and honey. It got very cold here in February, but they didn't die in a group so I have no idea what happened. I think they had adequate ventilation. Any ideas? We are new beekeepers, last year was the first year. I'm just really bummed out.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Despite the honey left they probably starved to death. They work up in what is called chimeny fashon. They do not work side ways normally.

If you still have some of the dead bees you can send a sample to the Maryland bee lab. Web search USDA bee lab and you will find their site and what you need to do to send a sample.

 Al


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## mibees2 (Apr 3, 2013)

you are not the only one who had that happen to you.
many of the hives in Michigan had the same issue. 
over-wintered hives here were around 50 - 80 % failures.

last year was a drought year for most of us. there was
no nectar in the last few months of the season, so the
colony shut the queen down. as a result, there weren't
enough bees to keep the hive warm so they could migrate
through the frames containing honey. so your bees both 
starved and froze. i lost one with the same symptoms as
you. the others were strong enough to survive. 

there are some things you can do at the end of the season
to increase their chances of survival; such as:
1. moving the honey frames toward the center closer to the brood frames.
DO NOT MOVE THE BROOD FRAMES!
2. take the bees from a second weak hive and put them into the strong hive.
3. have at LEAST 3 hives. ( good for backup )
4. learn to do splits.
5. keep at least 3 Nucs. they are your spare parts!
6. join a bee club. good for support, education, sourcing.
7. go to beekeeper seminars.
8. catch swarms.
9. DO NOT GIVE UP! as all things in life, failure teaches you how to succeed.
10. join a DEDICATED BEE forum. be selective. stay regional. Florida or 
California, etc., can't help with Iowa's issues.

a note on clubs:
the membership should be 10.00 - 15.00 a year and include a library with
educational material you can check out for FREE. every monthly meeting
should be an education for advanced and beginners. there should be a
mentor to help you through the first year and a half. ( don't be lazy; learn,
educate yourself, be proactive and above all, HELP YOUR MENTOR with HIS
hives! you will be amazed what you learn. ) 

i am appalled at what some "clubs" do to new people. especially membership
fees ( 60.00+ / year; 100.00 "training" classes ). no free advice, no help, no
mentoring, no direction. if this is what you run into, run away. start your own.

the goal here is to increase the domestic ( U.S. ) stock and eliminate the
need to bring in diseased, pest-ridden foreign pollinators.

no bees, no food!

http://www.sevenpondsbeekeepers.org/

http://www.michiganbees.org./


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## XayInIowa (May 9, 2011)

Thank you both for your responses, that is helpful. The beekeeping ass'n I'm in has very informative meetings but at a much higher level than where I am currently at. The legislation and research is interesting to hear about but I was initially hoping for more basic advice. The group is made up of a lot of (very) older people with a wealth of information, but the meetings aren't set up in a way to share it at all so I just continue to buy books and hope someone answers me in a forum, hopefully without being too annoying! So I appreciate you taking the time to answer me.

Next year I am going from 1 to 3 hives, and hopefully will have a better winter. Also, I'm buying both package and nucs this year, so I'm excited to do more hands-on! Gonna go check out the links now!


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