Other Animals why are there so many dead bees inside harvested combs? what did we do wrong?

[intrepid]

Recently we harvested some honey from the farm, however it come with very many dead bees,what did we do wrong? Why are so many bees in the combs harvested?

 

[Vet.Chris]

Hello it depends with the method of harvesting that you applied
Did you use the fumed/ smoke method or the escape board method.
If you used the fumed method..the bees should be smoked just enough for majority of them to escape. But if you do it too much most of the bees will suffocate and die on the combs.

 

[Mary Alma]

Recently we harvested some honey from the farm, however it come with very many dead bees,what did we do wrong? Why are so many bees in the combs harvested?

Hello Intrepid,

this could help,


1. Do you see dead bees that are inside the cell with their rear abdomen sticking out?

This is an indication that the bees starved. If there is honey present in the hive, the bees could have still perished because they were unable to maneuver the cluster over the stored food.

Bees head-first in cells

2. Does the hive seem wet? Are you seeing mold?

You hive could have died from too much moisture. Moisture in the hive can be very detrimental to bees, which is why one should make sure their hive has adequate ventilation.

3. Are there brown stains or streaks on the outside of the hive?

This could indicate a dysentery or nosema issue.


Note.......

For whatever the reason your bees died, it is important to understand why they died. Making sure they have plenty of feed is very critical. Also, having good control of mites is as equally important

 

[intrepid]

Hello it depends with the method of harvesting that you applied
Did you use the fumed/ smoke method or the escape board method.
If you used the fumed method..the bees should be smoked just enough for majority of them to escape. But if you do it too much most of the bees will suffocate and die on the combs.

Thanks Chris for your reply.

i am actually a new bee farmer, we used the the fumed smoker method it was our first time ever to use it, previously we were using smoke from firewood . We probably over used it.


Thank you.

Regards,

Intrepid.

 

[intrepid]

Hello Intrepid,

this could help,


1. Do you see dead bees that are inside the cell with their rear abdomen sticking out?

This is an indication that the bees starved. If there is honey present in the hive, the bees could have still perished because they were unable to maneuver the cluster over the stored food.

Bees head-first in cells

2. Does the hive seem wet? Are you seeing mold?

You hive could have died from too much moisture. Moisture in the hive can be very detrimental to bees, which is why one should make sure their hive has adequate ventilation.

3. Are there brown stains or streaks on the outside of the hive?

This could indicate a dysentery or nosema issue.


Note.......

For whatever the reason your bees died, it is important to understand why they died. Making sure they have plenty of feed is very critical. Also, having good control of mites is as equally important

Dear Dr, thank you so much for the detailed response.

I am a novice in this field of bee keeping. I got new hives however, they slowly began to be infiltrated by mites. The timber that was used to make them was from the gravelia tree the recommended timber is pine or cyprus which i learnt abit late. No, the bees were alive during harvesting but got squashed in the bucket, i think that is a sign of poor harvesting as im also new to the langstroth bee hive. I will still ensure that my hives are well ventilated to avoid molds and mites. The rear of the hives didnt look like the image below (Fig 1) so i can eliminate nosema (voided feces dripping down the hive near an exit point.)

http://scientificbeekeeping.com/scibeeimages/1-175.png

Fig One.


Thank you so much for your expert and swift advise.

Regards

Intrepid.