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Faunsdale, AL | You hope anything they run across out foraging kills them quickly and prevents them returning to the hive with the toxin and that’s quite common. However I’m sure it’s not always the case.
The other thing that is quite common is to have an outbreak of virus in the colony that’s vectored by the varroa mites usually. So high infestation rates of varroa have a direct effect as a parasite as well as spreading viruses within the colony. Unless the bee keeper is monitoring mite levels and treating appropriately, it’s probably at the top of the differential list.
While it is never good to lose the field bees, they are the oldest and have the shortest expected remaining lifespan of all the bees in the colony. So, the ONE TIME loss of the foragers to pesticides is unlikely to result in the loss of the colony. If it’s an ongoing problem, that’s different.
Late swarm or abscondment because of small hive beetle pressure after swarming is pretty common here. If they stay once the beetles reach a tipping point, it’s grim. The bees just give up and the beetles take over any brood there is and that’s that.
Edited by ccjersey 10/1/2024 08:32
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The bees all died
