# New Queen Gone (3x)



## Jimbo (May 1, 2002)

All,
I have lost two queens the previous year, and one already this year, out of my two hobby hives. I have had good brood, honey/pollen stores, and syrup. Yet, they have still vanished....the most recent I believe I saw the drone who carried her away.

What could I be doing wrong? Or is it just nature rulz against thee?


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## Dee A. Lusby (Oct 4, 2000)

Hi 

you wrote:
I have lost two queens the previous year, and one already this year, out of my two hobby hives. I have had good brood, honey/pollen stores, and syrup. Yet, they have still vanished....the most recent I believe I saw the drone who carried her away.
What could I be doing wrong? Or is it just nature rulz against thee?

Reply:
Drones do not carry queens away, worker bee maybe doing housecleaning, but not drones.

You say you have had good brood, honey and pollen stores, and syrup.

Now concerning your queens. Are you buying them and introducing them when you lose them? Or do you have laying queens and then they just up and vanish and you lose them?

Also, what type treatments are you using? I am assuming that you are using treatments of some kind. Drugs? Chemicals, essential oils, FGMO, or acids? If you are can you explain when and how?

Regards,

Dee A. Lusby


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## Jimbo (May 1, 2002)

Dee,

You wrote:
Drones do not carry queens away, worker bee maybe doing housecleaning, but not drones.

You say you have had good brood, honey and pollen stores, and syrup.

Now concerning your queens. Are you buying them and introducing them when you lose them? Or do you have laying queens and then they just up and vanish and you lose them?

Also, what type treatments are you using? 

Reply:

Hive1=H1, Hive2=H2

H1-He was large eyed (drone) in my face. So I know what he was, and she was longer abdomined than the drone. Off to the wind!

The queen was introduced after the first feral queen absconded last year. She was a Buckfast I purchased last June from Draper's, clipped, marked(1st year). Now gone.

H2- (3 weeks old) bought from Honeybee genetics (SMR,clip,mark) + 3 lb.s.
I gave her two frames from the first hive to feed and increase brood area quickly+syrup. She is gone also. 

I ordered two more SMR's from Honeybee Genetics tootsweet. They arived mon. this week. H2 accepted her on arrival. H1 either killed her in the cage, or what.(two weeks no queen now, torn all queen cells in anticipation of new queen bought)

The only med./chem they are having are fumidl in the first qt. of feeding then "au natural" from there(hive 2). Hive one has been fed 5 weeks prior fumidl. No sign of moths, varroa in drone brood, or sign in front of hives. I use FGM on frames with beekeepers sugar/pollen substitute. Everyone is fed in my hives

I have built three NUCs, purchased a Jenter kit from Mannlake to build my own queens from H2s queen......if and when she produces the first brood......if she stays. 








Help!


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## Dee A. Lusby (Oct 4, 2000)

Hi

You wrote backHive1=H1, Hive2=H2

H1-He was large eyed (drone) in my face. So I know what he was, and she was longer abdomined than the drone. Off to the wind!

Reply:
I still know of no published data showing drones in this capacity carrying off queens.
However, if the drone was locked onto her they were probably mating and in close proximty to hive which has been reported in rare cases. but since the queen disappeared, I rather doubt it here.

You continued:
The queen was introduced after the first feral queen absconded last year. She was a Buckfast I purchased last June from Draper's, clipped, marked(1st year). Now gone.

H2- (3 weeks old) bought from Honeybee genetics (SMR,clip,mark) + 3 lb.s.
I gave her two frames from the first hive to feed and increase brood area quickly+syrup. She is gone also. 

I ordered two more SMR's from Honeybee Genetics tootsweet. They arived mon. this week. H2 accepted her on arrival. H1 either killed her in the cage, or what.(two weeks no queen now, torn all queen cells in anticipation of new queen bought)

Reply:
Sounds like all you can do is take a frame of brood from H2 and roll on hoping H1 will now raise more cells to get another queen.Stop buying them and keep what they raise themselves.

You continued:
The only med./chem they are having are fumidl in the first qt. of feeding then "au natural" from there(hive 2). Hive one has been fed 5 weeks prior fumidl. No sign of moths, varroa in drone brood, or sign in front of hives. I use FGM on frames with beekeepers sugar/pollen substitute. Everyone is fed in my hives.

Reply:
Well, this is hard here as I myself hate chemicals and treatments of all kinds as unnatural and detrimental to honeybees. If you don't have the problem don't treat. Most oils end up blocking breathing passages (IMPOV) and sugar/pollen substitute were only originally designed for short duration feeding (6 weeks average). Thereafter colonies don't do well and go downhill especially in spring continued feedings. 

Best way is to keep enough stores of natural honey and pollen gathered by the bees themselves on hand within the colonies you got by unlimited broodnest management. 

You continued:
I have built three NUCs, purchased a Jenter kit from Mannlake to build my own queens from H2s queen......if and when she produces the first brood......if she stays.

Reply:
I know you hve problems, but one thing many hobbyists do is be into the colonies too often and too long each time they are. This in itself can lead to major queen problems of causing colonies to ball their queens, to carelessly squashing queens while working colonies, to driving them crazy enough to abscond.

Relax and let the one colony you got with a queen get brood going and then place a frame in the other, letting it raise a queen.If too weak the H1, then unite it temporarily to H2 and when strong later in a couple of months it you want two, then split them back apart and restart.

One can only do what one can only do and the bees allow. 

Relax. You will come through this!

Regards,

Dee


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