Many Dead Bees today
Thu, 08/20/2009 - 23:17 — A.Reid-Bretell
Today we noticed our plastic compost bin that has been the home to a hive was virtually inactive. When I looked further I found around a hundred dead bees on the ground in front of it. There are a few stragglers crawling around in the grass but not flying. I'm heart broken. We were just on a trip to Sequioa last week. Before we left they were very active. Now, nothing. I'm worried a neighbor has sprayed some poison. Is it possible that some other thing, disease or infestation may have done this?
Dead Bees
Im sorry to hear this :-( I had an experience in California where I was removing a large dead bush and I was hacking away at the root with an axe when I chopped into a very large nest. I was stung probably 20 times but I felt terrible for destroying their home.
dead bees
As a former hobby beekeeper I have another suggestion about your dead bees. You mention that they were living in a plastic compost bin. I assume that they got started from a swarm and just moved in there??
If so they may not have had a queen get established or she may have swarmed off with another swarm while you were gone. Without a queen the colony will die off. I have had it happen pretty much like you have described.
On a queenless hive
The bees that lived in the bin moved in en masse in Mid-May this year. It was evident that they were an atcive hive and not going anywhere. After we found the dead bees we did open the bin and found a comb about the size of a large shovel several layers thick. There were bee larvae and some emerging new bees inside the chambers. Does this mean there would have been a queen? Also, if a colony dies off, would they all die at the same time just outside the hive? Thanks for your reply.
Queenless hive
It sounds like you had a good swarm move in and since you had larvae the queen must have been laying eggs at least for awhile. Often swarms will reswarm after a short period if they don't find things to their liking especially if the hive gets too hot. Your compost bin might not have been ideal for them to establish the colony and if your weather turned hot they may have been driven out. The colony might tend to die off at almost the same time once the queen has gone. At this point its hard to tell, it could of course be pesticide or other poisoning or any of various reasons that colonies don't survive. You might talk it over with a local beekeeper if you can find one or county extension agent. Good luck with your bee observations.
More on the dead bees
On further inspection, I see that there are hundreds of dead bees just outside the hive. The few that remain alive are disoriented and unable to fly. The ones that are able to approach the hive opening will not or cannot go in. The comb inside is starting to crawl with ants. I'll try to post a picture of the comb if I can. I'm so sad.
Maybe you can test for pesticide residue?
Perhaps there's a private or government lab you can send a sample to for pesticide-residue testing. If you have a college nearby, someone there in environmental sciences might be able to direct you. And, though it's a slim chance, you might get directed to a researcher interested in colony collapse disorder who can advise you about, or can perform, tests for both pesticides and disease.
It's sad, anyway you look at it. And it can be maddening if the cause turns out to be pesticide. But, if it does, there's a chance the spraying wasn't a deliberate attack on your bees. One of my former neighbors swore by Sevin and stockpiled it. The first spring after we moved in, just when the waxwings and early bees were settling into the blossoms on our apple tree, he sprayed his property until the whole neighborhood reeked of carbaryl. When I talked with him about it, I learned he didn't know any better, and he didn't mean anything by it. He'd gardened against Nature for fifty years, starting when sulfur and arsenic powder were the insecticides of choice. Maybe you've got someone like that near you.
On testing
Thank you for your reply. I did speak to the neighbors on that side of the house. They claim to not use any pesticides of any kind and also stated that their dad kept bees so they are sympathetic. I had not considered other neighbors. I presumed that since they all died at the same time that it was a single spray somehwere close to the hive. Perhaps it could have been anywhere. I will also be contacting the local "beeman" and will consider your idea of contacting the local college. I have noticed a few bees lately flying around the bin- perhaps attracted by the honey--but there are very few bees in the yard now period.
On testing
Sorry to hear about your bees--pleae keep us posted--certainly sounds like a pesticide