Saturday, September 17, 2011

Lazy Queen?

So I've had a nuc in a friend's yard for quite a while, and for some reason the queen is just not laying like she should.

Here's a nice shot of the entrance:


Plenty of bees coming and going.

The nuc has 5 frames. The first frame was totally dry. The second frame, one side was empty, the other had some nectar and pollen:


Then there were a couple of frames of meager brood - nothing like I'd expect from a solitary nuc with no competition. Then on the last frame, which was empty, I saw the queen:


I'm convinced something is wrong with her. There's no way this nuc will make it through the winter. So I'll probably combine it with the green hive (after pinching the queen)...

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