# Why do bee's make sounds, of course not the usual buzzing?



## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

Today I was peering up into the hive looking through the SBB (hive is elevated on a stand) and I was watching foragers coming in with pollen and the gaurds getting ticked a bit at me through the wire when I started hearing noises coming from deep in the hive, kind of like growling almost. It was weird but cool, it happened a couple times.

Anyone else ever hear different sounds coming from the hives?


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## NasalSponge (Jul 22, 2008)

Well, there is the "we have just about had enough of this" corporate buzz, and the unmistakable sound they make when you open a queenless hive. Queens challenge each other by piping.


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

I seen the queen yesterday during the inspection and was extremely careful when I put the frame back that she was on, making sure she was walking across the middle of the frame away from the edges, so I dont think I crushed her. I hope nothing happened to her atleast? I imagine the unmistakable sound when you open a queenless hive is you screaming in agony from being stung!!LOL 

Ive heard the "im tired of you, go away" sound yesterday towards the end of the inspection, I finished up and closed up the hive and walked away.


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## NasalSponge (Jul 22, 2008)

I am sorry I did not mean to imply YOUR hive was queenless, just listing different sounds my bee's make. The sound they make when they are queenless is almost a "help us", whimpering sound....hard to explain.


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## the kid (Nov 26, 2006)

are you talking about """ piping """ thats the sound a queen makes 
1.
“Piping
Piping describes a noise made by virgin and mated queen bees during certain times of the virgin queens’ development. Fully developed virgin queens communicate through vibratory signals: “quacking” from virgin queens in their queen cells and “tooting” from queens free in the colony, collectively known as piping. A virgin queen may frequently pipe before she emerges from her cell and for a brief time afterwards. Mated queens may briefly pipe after being released in a hive. The piping sound is variously described as a children’s trumpet tooting and quacking. It is quite loud and can be clearly heard outside the hive. The piping sound is created by the flight motor without movement of the wings. The vibration energy is resonated by the thorax.
Piping is most common when there is more than one queen in a hive. It is postulated that the piping is a form of battle cry announcing to competing queens and the workers their willingness to fight. It may also be a signal to the worker bees which queen is the most worthwhile to support.
The piping sound is a G Sharpe. The adult queen pipes for a two-second pulse followed by a series of quarter-second toots.[2] The queens of Africanized bees produce more vigorous and frequent bouts of piping.”
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_bee

2.
“The most interesting of all the hive sounds, however, is the piping of the queen. Naturalists have long known that queens inside the hive emit two kinds of sound, called “tooting” and “quacking.” A close analysis of these sounds and the circumstances of their emission now provides the strongest evidence that bees use sound to convey specific messages.

Tooting is the regal identification of a virgin queen soon after she has emerged from the cell in which she developed. A hive cannot tolerate more than one queen at a time. In a hive that lacks a queen several queen-bearing cells develop simultaneously in a comb, but one matures earlier than the others. Once this queen has emerged, has hardened and has become steady on her legs, she proceeds to visit other queen cells, tear them open and sting to death their potential but not yet mature queens. Often, however, the worker bees do not allow her to dispose of all her potential rivals in this way; they bar her from some of the cells. She then begins to toot and continues to do so day and night, perhaps for a week or more. Her tooting rises in intensity and sometimes can be heard more than 10 feet from the hive.

Meanwhile the maturing queen bees still in cells try to get out in their turn. The worker bees hold them back, however; as fast as one of them opens the cap of her cell the workers push it back in place and glue it shut. Thereupon the imprisoned queens also start to pipe, but in a different pattern and at a lower tone than the free queen. The workers let out some of these quackers, but only one at a time. The reigning queen and the newly released rival then battle until one is killed. Sometimes the series of fights between the survivor and the new rivals goes on until only one queen is left. This survivor, still a virgin, then flies away from the hive to mate successively with several drones (on the wing) and returns to begin laying eggs.
go to utube and hear a piping queen
A. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_KihPy-s98
B. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qXLEZejRow


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

Oh no, i wasnt implying at all that you were thinking I was queenless!! Not at all!! I am greatful to all responses from any one , good or bad!! I just want to learn everything I can about bees, they are absolutley amazing creatures, simple yet complex!! I only have two regrets, I wish I would have taken up bee keeping a long time ago, and, I wish I would have set-up more than one hive this year!!LOL I may have another swarm hive coming soon, hope it comes through!! Take care bud!!


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

The Kid, thank you very much for that info!!! That is exactly what I heard from the hive!! Thanks for the Youtube links!!:thumbsup:


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## fish_stix (May 17, 2009)

If it's around meal time it could be burps and, OMG, flatulence.


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## Mud Songs (Sep 30, 2010)

The most curious sound I've heard from one of my hives is the crackling sound. Here's a sample I found on YouTube:

http://youtu.be/z-0XTccnr20


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## the kid (Nov 26, 2006)

watch the hive they may be getting ready to swarm ,, check for swarm cells that are open ... she is there for a reason .. ether swarm or replace the old queen . move the old one with a few frames .. one honey, one egg one caped, the rest empty .. this will cover your butt ether way


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

the kid said:


> watch the hive they may be getting ready to swarm ,, check for swarm cells that are open ... she is there for a reason .. ether swarm or replace the old queen . move the old one with a few frames .. one honey, one egg one caped, the rest empty .. this will cover your butt ether way


They are a two week old package, I dont believe they have the numbers to want to swarm yet, but I could be wrong. When I checked the hive on Wednesday there were no swarm cells or supercedure cells, heck, there wasnt even any drone cells yet! Its a new hive with undrawn plastic foundation, which they are filling up fast and already have capped brood. I have another deep with frames that will be ready to go on when its time, might be by the first weekend in June.

I noticed the sounds about 1/2 hour or so after I closed up the hive after the inspection, maybe she was just calming the troops!! 

Again, thanks for your concern, and with only one hive so far, swarming would be a butt kicker to me!! I hope to be able to put some in a nuc later this summer and try to build up some numbers for next spring, plus I am hoping on a hived swarm that may be available from a friend! Winters are pretty mild around where I live, so Im hoping I have a good chance at over wintering my bees, ill leave them plenty of food to try and keep them from starving!!

Take care!!.........Jason


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

Mud Songs said:


> The most curious sound I've heard from one of my hives is the crackling sound. Here's a sample I found on YouTube:
> 
> http://youtu.be/z-0XTccnr20


Thats a cool sound as well!! Havnt heard that one yet!!


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## johnblagg (May 15, 2011)

I have once or twice heard what I assumed was my queen make a deep loud sound, nothing at all like what the utube video had ...sounded like a warning that she was irritated that the hive was open and she was calling the troops to attention ...it was a distinct one bee making it sound not the entire hive buzzing


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## Bonterra Bees (Aug 30, 2009)

Hey “kid”
Thanks for all the good information about the “Queen Songs” I have heard them often in my ObHs, a thrill. I hear them mostly in swarm season when the old queen is gone and new queens are battling it out for their throne. Ya gotta love Bees and ya gotta love learning so much from ObHs.
Mark
http://bonterrabees.com


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