Another Hive Check…looking for signs of a Queen 8.19.13

It’s been 9 days since the last check.

I came prepared with a magnifying glass. Jim suited up and did a good job of taking pictures. Unfortunately….I always had the comb in the wrong direction for looking directly into the cell with the camera.

It was HOT!   You can see sweat beads on my veil.

I’m posting some of the better ones.  Guess I need to number the frames so I can look at the pictures and know I’ve seen them all.

There is a good sized bunch of bees on the right end of this frame.

Don’t know why…here’s a closer look.

They were very calm as we went about our business.

There is a bee in the upper L corner that interests me….looks like her abdomen is down in the cell…laying?  Queen or laying worker?

Here’s a closer look….and looking at the other bees…there seem to be a lot of them with their heads in a cell cleaning…. more so than on other frames….making more room for her to lay?…or is it just wishful thinking.

Here are a few on a bit of capped honey…..aren’t they beautiful?

Nectar and pollen. Notice all the different colors of pollen. This is really very pretty when you see it.

I ask lots of questions on the www.beemaster.com forum and it has been suggested I wait a little bit longer to give a Virgin Queen a chance to mate and start laying.

I’ve located a beekeeper that has Queens and will order one after the next check.

If any of you “beeks” out there can see something that would swing it either way…please let me know.