October Swarm Catch

It's kind of late in the year for honey bees to be starting a new colony, but it does happen. Here's a short video of a small colony "moving in" to their new home.

Since "closing" on their house, the bees have been coming in with huge loads of pollen for their winter food. They've also done some modifications. The entrance hole is 3/4" in diameter. The bees must have decided that that was too big, and that too much heat would be escaping in the winter. So, they have reduced the entrance by at least half with propolis which is a caulk-like substance which the bees produce from resins they gather from trees. By reducing their entrance, it also makes it more easily defendable from other robbing colonies or predators.

Honey bees are one of God's marvelous creations. I hope that I can help this colony make it through the winter, so they can become a healthy and productive hive.

May 9th Swarm Catch

Here's a video of a recent swarm I caught. Notice how the volume of the "buzz" gets louder as my videographer (my wife) gets closer to the hive box.

We successfully relocated the bees to our bee yard, and they are building comb very quickly. It should become a healthy and strong hive.