# "Purring" hive? and how to spot robbing..?



## Irene S (Feb 7, 2008)

I had posted a few days ago (see here) about a very active hive and an anemic hive.

I did notice that the 'stronger' hive was making a weird noise from time to time, it sounded like it was 'purring'...? is that normal? No I don't think there's a feral cat stuck in there. 

Also, there was some mention that there may be robbing going on in the more active hive.. how can you tell? I was watching the entrance and there seemed to be alot of drones being thrown to their death  but I didn't see any ladies fighting. What should I look out for? I can't ask for IDs or a secret handshake...?? 


I took *Eyeshooter*'s advice and resumed feeding the 'weaker' hive which was looking far more active yesterday (the temps where higher, low 50s and the sun was out). I got alot of great advice on that thread, thx :thumbsup:


----------



## Ski (Jan 18, 2007)

If you block the entrance at night and then there are bees there in the morning trying to get in, I would say they are robber bees. I would block the entrance until mid afternoon to see if robbers show up. This is what I was taught and it works. If you do have robbing add a robber screen. 
Good Luck, 
Ski


----------



## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

Please allow me to do some "guessing" 

A hive that is queenless makes an unusal sound (purring?), but would keep drones.

Lots, and lots of robbers coming and going can make a weak hive seem "strong". Many, many Robber Bees could produce a purring sound. And a colony that has little stored honey will remove drones as starvation nears. A very weak hive may not fight robbers at hives entrance.

Are you sure you dont have TWO weak hives?


----------



## Irene S (Feb 7, 2008)

Dave W said:


> Please allow me to do some "guessing"
> Are you sure you dont have TWO weak hives?


uh oh.. maybe 

it's to late to requeen, if this is the case? It's fall already (I'm in Connecticut) and the days are getting colder. I spotted the queen last time I opened the hive, but that was two weeks ago.

there's lots of pollen going in and out and lots of honey store.. 

what's a robber screen? :scratch:

oh dear. My first year of beekeeping isn't turning out to be a very good experience


----------



## BeeCurious (Aug 7, 2007)

*Robber Screen photos*



Irene S said:


> uh oh.. maybe
> 
> what's a robber screen? :scratch:
> 
> oh dear. My first year of beekeeping isn't turning out to be a very good experience


Hi Irene !

Here is a link to M. Bush's "Robber Screen" photos. Click on the images for larger photos. This looks like a real good thing to have (I didn't know what they were but now I need them...

I share your feelings about "first year experiences".


----------



## Irene S (Feb 7, 2008)

aw, thanks for the link! I was googling like a lunatic, I had no idea such a thing existed. I wonder who long this 'robbing' has been going on .. :s

But won't the robber screen just trap the 'robbers' inside? What if the hive isn't strong enough to do them in?



BeeCurious said:


> I share your feelings about "first year experiences".


aw, thanks. I guess I just needed to vent a little.. it seems all these problems have just surfaced in the past three weeks or so (I was out of town for two of those weeks) and things were going so well prior to that 

I was mentally preparing to lose one hive, but both? *sigh*

I don't even know what to do if that happens. 

Other than putting the robber screen on, I'm not sure what my options are at this point. 

I don't even know what to do if they don't overwinter. Do I just order more bees, or will it be too late by the time I figure out if they've survived or not?


----------



## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesrobbing.htm


----------



## dickm (May 19, 2002)

Hi folks,
Another CT beek here. (Danbury). Robbing is a way that nature insures the strong survive. Cutting the entrance down to an inch or two is usually enough to help a colony defend itself. This should be done when the honey flow stops as that's the start of the robbing season. Feeding, especially at the entrance (Boardman feeder) is a good way to start it. Other triggers are: keeping a colony open too long or leaving scraps or combs of honey in the open. Robbing screens should be on in advance of trouble so the inhabitants learn the way in and out. The robbers follow the scent of honey while the legal entrants negotiate the maze. It's a good ploy if you have weak hives or nucs in the same yard with strong colonies. Covering the entrance with handfuls of grass helps as does a wet sheet, or turning on a sprinkler. 

You have plenty of time to order bees. If they are "deadouts" in the spring, clean the comb the best you can and dump in a package. They will take off better as you have drawn comb now

Good Luck,

Dickm.


----------



## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

irene s writes:
I did notice that the 'stronger' hive was making a weird noise from time to time, it sounded like it was 'purring'...? is that normal? No I don't think there's a feral cat stuck in there.

tecumseh:
ok... who put the cat in the box? maybe it is all hollow's eve gag irene?

purring can also be associated with brood rearing. pollen coming into a hive would jive more with that tone (kinda' like a vibrating pad or chair) than with the tone of robbing (which is a little more frenzied to my ear). at this point (for me) the tone would be a fairly inprecise clue.

with an open front entrance the first clue of robbing would be bits and pieces of wax accumlating on the bottom board and generally when robbing gets far enough along this gets tossed out the front door. at the latter end of the process (usually at this point any remedy is useless) bits of pollen get added to the discarded wax.


----------



## RayMarler (Jun 18, 2008)

If you've recently been feeding syrup to the girls, you might be hearing the sound of them drying it out into honey.


----------



## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

RayMarler makes an excellent point!


----------



## BWrangler (Aug 14, 2002)

Hi Irene,

Was the purring sound a staccato sound like this?

http://bwrangler.litarium.com/hive-song/

If it is the same sound. It's a most unusual but very distinctive sound. I've only heard it a few times in my life.

Regards
Dennis


----------



## Irene S (Feb 7, 2008)

D. Murrell said:


> Hi Irene,
> Was the purring sound a staccato sound like this?


Dennis .. it sounded EXACTLY like the second (night) sound in your post (I couldn't really hear the 'day' sound, but I can't tell my coworkers to KEEP IT DOWN I'M LISTENING TO BEES ON THE INTERNET  )

thanks for the link .. I really thought I was losing my mind. I thought it sounded like purring, but I have four cats so that's a description I would use. Only one hive was making this noise.

I was at the hive twice since then (it's at an outyard) and I haven't heard it since, but when I DID hear it it the sun was high and it was warm.. lots of bee activity. The past two times it's been overcast and things have been quiet.

*ETA:* I see you're in florida. When I say WARM I meant in the low 60s, which is warm for the NE this time of year. I would venture to guess that WARM in Florida might be a little different ^_^


----------



## BWrangler (Aug 14, 2002)

Hi Irene,

You're one of only three people that have heard that sound that I know of. The other is a beekeeper in Germany. And it hasn't been reported in any research or literature that I'm aware of.

It is a most peculiar sound and seldom heard. But it's definitely produced by the bees themselves. And it's a rare treat for a beekeeper.

I don't have a clue what it means. But your observation certainly confirms that it's real.

Thanks for sharing.

Concerning robbing, there are two kinds. The first is very observable and involves aggressive bees fighting, killing, stinging, etc. The other, progressive robbing, is very hard to detect as there's little difference between normal flight/behavior except bees leave the hive full and return empty.

Over time, both kinds can be equally destructive. Some bees are quite good at progressive robbing and others are quite susceptible to it.

Regards
Dennis


----------



## Irene S (Feb 7, 2008)

Dennis- 

what struck me about the sound was that its LOUD. I actually took a look around to see if it was coming from the trees just behind the hive. I could hear it from 6-10 feet away, and I have not heard it since.

not sure if yours was this loud too.

I'll keep an eye out for the robbing, and will feed as long as the ladies are interested. I covered the hive with a sheet a few days ago and wouldn't you know it, it's been either pouring or less that 40F since. 

fingers crossed! Hopefully I'm on my way from a bee-haver to a bee-keeper


----------



## Chsmurphy (Jun 22, 2014)

D. Murrell said:


> Hi Irene,
> 
> You're one of only three people that have heard that sound that I know of. The other is a beekeeper in Germany. And it hasn't been reported in any research or literature that I'm aware of.
> 
> ...


----------

