Why Bees Leave Their Hives?

Why Bees Leave Their Hives?

Many new beekeepers find it strange when part of the colony or an entire colony leaves the hive. Like everything else, there is reason behind this behavior. In a healthy colony, bees leave the hive to forage for nectar, to find water, or to cleanse their bodies of parasites or other materials. The drone bees often go on mating flights with the queen bee as well. But there are two other reasons why bees leave their hives – swarming and absconding. Let us discuss each of these in detail.

Swarming

When colonies start growing very big, a group of bees would take off to start a new colony with a new queen or with the existing queen. This means that the colony is split into two. It is a healthy movement which shows that your bees are growing in numbers.

The original colony would either continue under the old queen or would raise a new queen if the old queen has left the hive to start the new colony. For beekeepers, swarming may reduce the yield of honey for a small period of time until the colony grows in size.

It is important for you to be attentive about the health of the colony after swarming because the new queen can be weak and the colony may fail. If the colony is queenless then it may show signs of aggression. You may have to introduce a new queen to make sure that the colony thrives and regains its size.

Absconding

Sometimes, your bees would simply take off from a hive along with the queen. The young ones are left behind if they cannot fly. This is not a healthy sign. It indicates that something went wrong in the colony. Some of the most popular reasons why a hive experiences absconding are:

·       Infestation of wax moths, parasites or mites

·       The colony is threatened by predators like bears or skunks

·       Ant invasions

·       Lack of forage

·       Uncomfortable hive

·       Poor ventilation of the hives

·       Too much disturbance

·       Colony Collapse Disorder

As a beekeeper, you have control over some of these factors while others may seem out of your control. Make sure that the hives are comfortable for the bees. Your equipment should be of good quality and should provide adequate ventilation for the bees to live comfortably. You must also avoid excessive disturbance. If the hives are placed in a way where strong winds would regularly rock the equipment, then the bees would leave the hive.

You must always provide them with adequate flower patches to ensure that they can forage without problems. If you notice an infestation, take action quickly. If you are aware that your hives are under the radar of a predator, then make sure that your hives are out of the reach of these animals.

Finally, one reason that is still being researched is Colony Collapse Disorder. When bees suddenly take off from healthy hives even after you have been doing everything right, beekeepers call it Colony Collapse Disorder. Not much is known about the reason behind this behavior.