# bees with missing wings in the grass



## beehive (Jan 3, 2009)

we have some bee with tatered and missing wings in the grass. i looked at some of them closely and i dont see any varroa mites on them. this is a new package that was hived a month ago. are these bees the foragers that had it and are kicked out for being too roughed up and completeing there foraging jobs?


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## Sundance (Sep 9, 2004)

Are the wings shriveled looking?? Do they look like old bees?
Old bees will be hairless on the backside/abdomen.


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## beehive (Jan 3, 2009)

they have missing wings and hairless


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## schmism (Feb 7, 2009)

in the spring/summer months the avg life expectancy is only about 3 weeks.

Then wings on foragers will break down/tear up/fall apart etc from all the flying at that point the bee has reached the end of its usefull life.

remember time frame from newly layed egg to emerging worker bee is 21 days (so roughly the same time they will live) so if your queen is laying well, you shouldn't have anything to worry about.


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## Sundance (Sep 9, 2004)

Your hive has been in place and active enough to likely
have newly emerged bees as well. The warning sign is
looking for shriveled, deformed, wings.

If the bees you are seeing are truly old (hairless abdomen)
field bees then no worry. But if they are fairly young with
pronounced hairs on abdomen, and display wing deformation,
then you may have an issue.


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## beehive (Jan 3, 2009)

thats what i was expecting to hear is that there past there useful life.


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